Hard news: Mixed O’Hare ruling

By James Fuller and Justin Kmitch
jfuller@dailyherald.com jkmitch@dailyherald.com
Posted Thursday, July 26, 2007

Bulldozers could raze Bensenville homes in the area proposed for expanding O’Hare International Airport, but not until the city of Chicago completes environmental testing ordered Wednesday by a DuPage County judge.

The decision by DuPage Circuit Judge Kenneth Popejoy signaled a partial victory for Bensenville officials. It creates a further delay to the demolition work they have opposed for some time.

It’s unclear how long the environmental tests would take. Popejoy said he wants to see the results of the testing before allowing demolition to proceed.

Bensenville submitted sworn affidavits by experts indicating the likelihood of toxic chemicals being present on various parts of the expansion site, such as the old Nelson Steel and Wire Co. property.

“I am not going to risk the residents of Bensenville and the other residents in the surrounding area,” Popejoy said.

Last week, Republican U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam urged the FAA and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to conduct a thorough study to examine the risks of exposure to toxic substances during the proposed demolition. Roskam called Wednesday’s ruling a “step in the right direction.”

“This decision is in concert with what I was arguing for,” he said. “My constituents need to be protected from these unknown risks.”

But not all of Popejoy’s decisions went Bensenville’s way.

Bensenville had planned to issue stop work orders to any demolition crew and to arrest anyone who ignored them.

But Popejoy ruled Bensenville’s local laws requiring village approval of demolition applications don’t apply to the O’Hare expansion project.

Popejoy emphasized Bensenville’s lack of authority to hinder the expansion. He said he’ll clear his schedule to review the results of the environmental tests to prevent further delays.

That indicates demolition ultimately will proceed. It’s just a matter of when.



Still, Bensenville attorney Joseph Karaganis emphasized his disbelief that full funding of any phase of the expansion will occur.

Karaganis said he believes Chicago to be between $1.5 billion and $2.1 billion short of paying for the initial $8 billion phase.

Earlier this year, project leaders disclosed a $400 million cost overrun and a new projected deadline — pushing the cost from $7.5 billion to nearly $8 billion and setting back completion from 2013 to 2014. They also pushed back the opening of O’Hare’s first new runway by one year.

If demolition proceeds but funding stalls, Bensenville would be stuck with a vast dirt plain.

“Many people, including the media, believe that we are pursuing a lost cause because Chicago is moving some dirt around on the airport grounds,” Village President John Geils said in a prepared statement. “Chicago is engaged in a dangerous and costly game in which they are already spending untold millions before the most important issues are settled.

“If the courts rule against Chicago — and we’re confident that when they follow the rule of law, they will — Daley will need to do some serious explaining to taxpayers why he pursued this folly.”

Chicago’s attorneys declined comment after Wednesday’s hearing and calls placed to O’Hare Modernization Program officials weren’t returned.