CAPITOL RECAP: Governor announces $94 million in airport grants
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS
SPRINGFIELD – Nearly 100 airports across Illinois will receive state funding in the coming months for projects ranging from new runways and road relocations to the purchase of mowers and snow removal equipment.
The money comes from the $45 billion Rebuild Illinois capital infrastructure plan which passed the General Assembly and the governor signed into law in 2019. Another $11.5 million for the projects will be contributed by local sources.
Gov. JB Pritzker was in Moline Wednesday to publicize the funding for 96 airports around the state, including $5.6 million for the Quad Cities International Airport. The Quad Cities funding will go toward entrance road realignment and parking expansion.
The state grants range from $36,000 for the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in LaSalle County to acquire a tractor with a flex wing mower to nearly $11.8 million for the Morris Municipal Airport in Grundy County for a crosswinds runway.
St. Louis Downtown Airport in St. Clair County is slated to receive $5 million for ramp and taxiway access from the airfield, including a jetblast noise mitigation barrier.
St. Louis Downtown Airport is the third busiest airport in Illinois and was recognized by the IDOT Division of Aeronautics as the 2021 Reliever Airport of the Year.
The project has been in the planning stages for several years, and construction is anticipated to begin in 2022.
The Cairo Regional Airport near the state’s southern tip will receive $309,000 from the state, including $72,000 to acquire snow removal equipment and $237,033 to replace airport lighting.
The Tri-Township Airport in Carroll County will receive $171,000 to install new electric airfield security gates.
The Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport in Springfield will see more than $3 million to rehabilitate its north airport’s public parking lot and roadways.
Bolingbrook’s Clow International Airport will receive $2.8 million, $67,500 of which will help replace its rotating beacon, while more than $2.1 million will go toward the construction of a replacement parallel taxiway.
Southern Illinois Airport in Jackson County will see over $1 million, with $252,000 going toward the relocation of Fox Farm Road and $751,000 going to expand the southeast aircraft parking apron.
The Rebuild Illinois plan is a multimodal infrastructure package covering roads, bridges, waterways, air travel and rail, as well as bike and pedestrian pathways.
The transportation projects in the 2019 plan are largely funded through a doubling of the motor fuel tax to 38 cents, a rate that now goes up annually at the inflation rate. The measure also increased several fees motorists pay to the secretary of state, including registration fees.
A full list of projects can be viewed here.
* * *
HARRIS TO RETIRE: Illinois House Democratic Leader Greg Harris said Monday he will not seek reelection in 2022 and will step down from the General Assembly after eight terms in office.
Harris, 66, of Chicago, is the first openly LGBTQ legislative leader in Illinois history who spent much of his time in office advancing gay rights, health care reform and social service funding.
“I think it was just, it was just time. At the end of this term, I’ll have been there in the General Assembly, 16 years. And that just seemed to be a good amount of time,” Harris said during a phone interview.
Harris said he would finish the rest of his term and would continue to lead the Democratic caucus through the annual budget process in the upcoming 2022 session.
He said he chose to make the announcement now so other potential candidates in the 13th District would have time to decide if they want to run for the office. Candidates in the 2022 election will begin circulating nominating petitions in mid-January.
Harris was first elected in 2006, succeeding former Rep. Larry McKeon who, like Harris, was both openly gay and HIV-positive. He was reelected seven more times and did not face a challenger in any of those elections.
In 2010, Harris was the lead House sponsor of a bill, Senate Bill 1716, establishing the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act, which recognized civil unions of same-sex couples in Illinois.
In 2013, he was the lead House sponsor of another bill legalizing same-sex marriage in Illinois. Then-Gov. Pat Quinn signed it into law in November that year, nearly two years before the U.S. Supreme Court declared same-sex marriages legal nationwide.
Other legislative accomplishments during his tenure include reducing economic disparities in accessing mammograms and breast cancer treatment, cutting red tape in the state’s health care system and lowering the costs of prescription drugs.
In 2019, Harris was named House Majority Leader. From that position, he was able to help steer many of Gov. JB Pritzker’s policy initiatives through the House, including state budgets and the $45 billion capital improvements plan, “Rebuild Illinois.”
Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service covering state government and distributed to more than 400 newspapers statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
Local News
Tabares backs West Lawn Branch Library
Spread the love Twenty-third Ward Ald. Silvana Tabares (left) recently toured the renovated West Lawn Branch Library, 4020 W. 63rd St.,, with new branch manager Mina Duarte. Details about the renovation’s may be found in the West Lawn column in the January 28 Greater Southwest News-Herald. –Supplied photo
Chuy backs Starbucks unionization
Spread the love U.S. Rep Jesús “Chuy” García (D-4th), white mask, recently stood with those who support unionization of Starbucks workers, outside a shop in the city. Workers are attempting to organize under the banner of Chicago and Midwest Joint Board, Workers United, an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union. –Supplied photo
‘Grizzled’ sophomores help Naz beat Marist
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Nazareth’s “grizzled veterans” have won 19 of their first 20 games. The Roadrunners’ were victorious in a big East Suburban Catholic Conference showdown with Marist, with two sophomores doing most of the damage in a 53-42 win in LaGrange Park on Jan. 19. Nazareth improved to 19-1, 4-0.…
Postseason Sports Report: Area stars ready for state bowling and dancing
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The first two IHSA state tournaments for winter sports will take place this weekend, and an army of area athletes will be competing in both. The boys bowling and competitive dance championships will be held Friday and Saturday, with the bowlers heading to St. Clair Bowl in O’Fallon…
Strus tops former coach in Stagg’s win over Sandburg
Spread the loveBy Jeff Vorva Staff writer Marty Strus has nothing but good things to say about his former high school coach, John Daniels. “He’s meant a ton to me,” Strus said of the coach he faced off against last week when his Stagg Chargers took on Sandburg. “He meant a lot to me as…
Palos Area Chamber dedicated to promoting area
Spread the loveBy Kelly White Dedicated to helping local area businesses strive is the Palos Area Chamber of Commerce. The chamber was formed in 1949 when a small group of merchants joined together for the purpose of advancing economic, industrial, professional, cultural, and civic welfare of the Palos Heights area. For 68 years, the Palos…
We need real solutions to crime
Spread the loveBy Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 Crime and safety concerns are the number one topic of all the calls and texts I receive. It seems that many politicians offer no solutions except the usual lists of ways to keep safe. I think everyone knows about locking…
Icy spill yielded plenty of good will
Spread the loveBy Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 Here is a giant shout out to our first responders in the community. On Jan. 9, when a sheet of ice descended on Chicago, I was walking the dog. Walking around Peck School was great.…
It’s a busy January in Gage Park
Spread the loveBy Joan Hadac Neighborhood correspondent at large Greetings, Gage Parkers! I’m pleased to be filling in this week for Karen Sala. It’s fun for me to report on Gage Park, the neighborhood where I lived for the first 26 years of my life. There’s always something happening in this big, exciting part of…
Neighbors
Riot Fest abandons Chicago park for SeatGeek Stadium
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong Last year, Lyrical Lemonade moved its Summer Smash hip-hop music festival from Chicago’s Douglass Park to Bridgeview’s SeatGeek Stadium. Thousands of fans poured into the stadium at 7100 S. Harlem Ave. over the course of three days and, by most accounts, enjoyed the experience. Summer Smash returned to SeatGeek this…
Comings & Goings: Orland Park Summerfest returns this weekend
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong Back for a second go round this weekend is the Orland Park Area Chamber of Commerce’s Summerfest. The event combines a carnival, live music, an array of dining options and a car show, at the 153rd Street Metra Station location in Orland Park and will run from Friday, June 14,…
Repair Cafe this Saturday at Township of Lyons HQ
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch Repair cafes have become quite the thing for the Township of Lyons. So much so that another repair cafe will be offered from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday, June 15, at the township office, 6404 Joliet Road in Countryside. A repair café held in May was a smashing…
‘They didn’t have to kill my brother’ – sister of slain Bridgeview man
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch Arturo Cantu should be celebrating two big events this weekend. He would have celebrated his 40th birthday on June 14. And, a sister said, he would have enjoyed Father’s Day on Sunday, spending time with family and his two young children. Instead, 10 family members and friends gathered in a…
‘You just learn to live with the pain’
Spread the loveStatus hearing in July for McCook murder By Steve Metsch The attorney representing a Chicago man charged with murdering a Blue Island man in McCook in February told a judge Wednesday there’s been “a significant and outstanding discovery in this matter.” Attorney Damon Cheronis made his comment before Cook County Circuit Court Judge…
Man shot in La Grange; suspect arrested in Stickney
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch A man was shot Tuesday afternoon in La Grange, according to a news release received Wednesday from the police department. A suspect has been apprehended, the release said. The shooting victim remains in stable condition at a local hospital, the release said. La Grange Police, working with the Major Case…
Softball | Marist will play for state title for fourth straight season
Spread the loveBy Randy Whalen Correspondent Marist returned to the state title game for the fourth straight season with a 7-1 victory over Mundelein in the semifinals, held June 7 at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria. The Mustangs (36-2) were making their first appearance at state since 1996. “We have a core group of returners,”…
McCook building inspector retires after 18 years
Spread the loveBy Steve Metsch After 18 years of inspecting buildings, be it a modest bi-level house or a sprawling multi-million-dollar warehouse, Terrence Hickey is retiring from the village of McCook. His retirement takes effect June 28, Mayor Terrance Carr said during the June 3 meeting of the village board. “I’m jealous,” Carr said. “(He’s…
New Summit Girl Scout troop off and running
Spread the loveBy Carol McGowan There’s a new Girl Scout Troop in Summit, and they have been busy. Troop 56615 is made up of girls from Summit School District 104 from first-grade to third-grade, and between 7-9 years old, making them Brownies in the scouting world. They have 10 girls so far, and Troop Leader…