Efforts Under Way To Make O'Hare International Leader

<B> Efforts Under Way To Make O'Hare International Leader</B>

By Deborah Mora

Two business groups last month separately released plans designed to ensure that Chicago maintains its status as the aviation hub of the United States in the next millennium.

The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce released a study recommending strategies for expanding O'Hare to make it the number one international hub over Los Angeles, Miami and New York. The report details why a third airport in south suburban Peotone--which has been nothing but an idea on paper and a proposal dear to the hearts of many Republican Illinois lawmakers--isn't feasible.

Meanwhile, the Commercial Club of Chicago released its own report recommending the land banking of acreage needed for a Peotone airport now, so government officials at least will have some options in the next century. However, it also called for the immediate expansion of both O'Hare and Midway "to retain their pre-eminence in both passenger and freight" transportation, according to Dea Meyer, vice president of the 121-year-old business group.

The Commercial Club contends that the $30 million or so it might cost to buy land for a possible Peotone airport is a pittance compared with the billions of dollars the aviation infrastructure brings into the region. "We need to position ourselves, to hedge our bets," Meyer said, noting that Midway will be beyond its capacity by 2012.

Aviation was just one of many issues the Commercial Club addressed in a 125-page draft of its guidebook for government leaders on the region's growth. The club 89-years ago commissioned Daniel Burnham to design a plan for the city that has resulted in the lakefront parks, grand boulevards and other aesthetics that give the city its charm. With the approaching millennium, the club began work on a new plan--Metropolis Chicago 2020--to serve as a similar blueprint. The club's 400 members include senior executives for major corporations, universities and cultural institutions.

"The business community feels strongly about preserving Chicago's aviation position. The airports are the economic engines of the region," Meyer said.

<B>Study Shows Runway Demand </B>

The Chamber, meanwhile, commissioned Booz-Allen & Hamilton Inc. to conduct an eight-month study of aviation needs that details ways to improve services for business travelers and boost the economy of the Chicago area.

The study cautioned that if O'Hare doesn't add more runway capacity within the next 20 years, international traffic growth will be hindered and connecting traffic will resort to alternative hubs.

Strategies Booz-Allen & Hamilton recommended to increase growth at O'Hare included using larger airplanes, increasing load factors and using air traffic control developments to gain the most efficiency out of existing air space.

Once this air traffic control technology is implemented, O'Hare, Midway and regional airports should be able to satisfy demand growth until 2015, said Cyrus Freidheim, vice chairman of Booz-Allen & Hamilton.