Copyright Chicago Tribune
The recent Tribune editorial about the city of Harvey declaring itself effectively bankrupt reveals an urgent crisis in need of bold solutions. Cook County’s south suburban communities have higher unemployment rates, fewer job opportunities and lower average incomes compared with the north suburbs. That imbalance has persisted for decades. It’s the root of an economic struggle that has developed into vast disparities in health care access, education resources and transportation infrastructure. In America, participation in the global economy is a key to prosperity. For much of the 20th century, Harvey and its neighbors were industrial powerhouses, connected to the world through manufacturing, logistics and trade. The old Ingalls-Shepard Forging steel plant in Harvey, opened in 1910 and later acquired by Wyman-Gordon, supplied parts for engines, crankshafts, airframes and landing gear. By World War II, nearly every U.S. combat plane contained Wyman-Gordon components. Ingalls-Shepard Forging made Harvey one of several south suburban economic superstars. As the Cold War ended and defense spending declined, American corporations pursued cheaper labor and expansion overseas. By 1986, the plant closed. Harvey lost its largest employer and its connection to the global economy. Today, Harvey is furloughing police officers and firefighters to avoid bankruptcy. Economic policies coming out of Washington are making matters worse for south suburban communities. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have driven up the cost of coffee, cars and clothing. Those tariffs are rotting the crops of Illinois farmers whose soybeans and produce can’t get to market. That’s even before the big, ugly bill takes away Medicaid and food stamps. These policies are hurting working families, small businesses and entire regions such as the south suburbs, already reeling from decades of disinvestment. There’s a solution that’s been decades in the making. During my 17 years in Congress, I worked with four governors — two Republicans, Jim Edgar and George Ryan, and two Democrats, Rod Blagojevich and Pat Quinn — to purchase the land for a new South Suburban Airport. With a 10,000-foot runway, this airport would reconnect south suburban communities to the global economy that left us behind. The state of Illinois already owns the land, much of it acquired because south suburban Cook County communities chose to forgo other state appropriations to make this project possible. The Federal Aviation Administration has long recognized the need for a third major airport in the Chicago region to handle growing air traffic. O’Hare and Midway are at capacity. The time for a third airport is now. The money is there. The 2019 Rebuild Illinois capital bill included $162 million for master planning and road improvements linking Interstate 57 to the airport site. In 2023, the General Assembly required the Illinois Department of Transportation to review proposals to develop and operate the airport by year’s end. This isn’t just about relieving congestion at O’Hare or reducing airfares, though those benefits would be widely felt. It’s about our economic future. A new airport would bring freight and cargo operations that Midway can’t handle. It would create tens of thousands of well-paying jobs, attract logistics and manufacturing firms, and spark commercial development across the south suburbs and downstate. As Harvey descends into economic crisis, Tilton, Illinois, a small town south of Danville, recently lost 50 UPS jobs likely because it was too far from a major airport. How many more communities must lose jobs, their tax base and essential services before we act? Building this airport — this gateway to the global economy — will be transformative to the surrounding communities. The south suburbs aren’t asking for welfare or special treatment. We are tired of begging for jobs, pharmacies and grocery stores. We’re seeking opportunities to participate in the same global economy that fuels prosperity elsewhere in Illinois. We have the studies, the land, the money and the workforce. We just need Gov. JB Pritzker to release the land and unlock the gates to the global economy. The day we break ground, IDOT estimates creation of 10,000 construction jobs. Economic benefits will extend across Illinois, from Harvey to Kankakee, from Danville to downstate farms. We’re this close to connecting to the global economy and reclaiming our prosperity. In fact, we’re only one 10,000-foot runway away. Jesse Jackson Jr. represented Illinois’ 2nd Congressional District for 17 years and is a current candidate for the seat in the 2026 Democratic primary.
