OUSTED MEMBERS OF EXECUTIVE AIRPORT BOARD RIP ‘POWER PLAY’
As Wheeling residents learned last month of a recall effort targeting Village President Pat Horcher, another political feud already had been brewing in the community.
Horcher and Prospect Heights Mayor Nick Helmer each asked members of the Chicago Executive Airport board to step down recently, sparking allegations the two are trying to seize control of the panel.
Their requests came at a time when the airport, which is co-owned by the two towns, is taking a serious look at its future — including whether to expand its runway, buy new properties and build a U.S. Customs facility.
Former directors Betty Cloud and David Kolssak, who resigned at the elected officials’ request in June and September, respectively, both consider their removal a power play by the elected leaders.
“I think it’s about control,” Kolssak said. “The communities are so politicized that they don’t let the airport board run.”
Kolssak is leading the recall effort in Wheeling, though he says removing Horcher from office halfway through his term is about other issues, namely ongoing scrutiny about whether the village president has paid his fair share of property taxes.
For Horcher, asking Kolssak
to step down was about keeping progress steady at the airport, rather than aggressive expansion that might push out some of the smaller operators.
“I didn’t think he was headed in a direction that I liked with the airport,” Horcher said.
Cloud said Helmer asked her to resign in June without stating a reason, leaving her to speculate.
“I have a gut feeling that it is a power play,” Cloud said. “I believe that the mayor is trying to control the board at the airport.”
Helmer did not return a phone call for comment.
Cloud was replaced by Scott Saewert, the former Wheeling Township highway commissioner. Voters eliminated Saewert’s former position in 2016.
Horcher has not yet nominated a replacement for Kolssak.
If it is a power play, what are the mayor and village president trying to control?
Runway expansion is one possibility sure to draw attention from residents. Kolssak supports runway expansion and Cloud seems open to the idea, while Helmer and Horcher have stated opposition to it.
Runway expansion is one part of master plan update underway at the airport, among a list of other issues. Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, the consultants hired to oversee the process, are expected to present several expansion options when the update is released next year.