Protestors Brave Cold, Wind, To "Shut This Airport Nightmare Down"

What would make some 30 people brave the bitter cold of a Chicago winter to stand outside for hours in protest? For members of "Shut This Airport Nightmare Down," it's the thought of losing their property to eminent domain as Chicago Mayor Richard Daley continues his quest for the city's third major airport.

It's a sign of the sentiment among residents of Chicago's South Side -- they don't want to sell and they don't want the city to take away their property. And yet, they've started receiving letters from the Illinois Department of Transportation's Land Acquisition office saying, start thinking about selling, or get ready to face seizure of your property.

"We're extremely disappointed in Gov. Blagojevich for allowing the state to threaten landowners with eminent domain for a project the FAA has not approved, the airlines refuse to come to, and has no plan on who [will] own or run it or pay [for the] surrounding infrastructure cost," STAND president George Ochsenffeld was quoted in the Chicago Sun-Times as saying.

STAND members say the state DOT has sent those letters to 57 residents near the Chicago suburb of Peotone.

"It said we'll try three times to negotiate with you, and if we can't come to an agreement, we'll have to go forward with eminent domain," resident Jim Verduin told the Sun-Times. "It's either you negotiate with us or we're going to get it anyway.... It's stupid."

"We want to embarrass the governor," Ochsenffeld told the paper. "This project is not about transportation, it's about development, and it's cooked up by developers."

FMI: www.nothirdairport.org