Rockford airport awaits green light from FAA on Bell Bowl Prairie service road project
Eighteen months after the Chicago Rockford International Airport temporarily halted a $50 million expansion of its cargo operations, there is no clear timetable for work on the project to resume.
The Natural Land Institute and other preservationist organizations continue to fight the airport’s plans to build a service road through a portion of the ancient 25-acre Bell Bowl Prairie.
Lawyers representing the Natural Land Institute sent a 60-day intent-to-sue letter to the Greater Rockford Airport Authority on Jan. 23 after the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service joined the Illinois Department of Natural Resources in authorizing the destruction of approximately 15 acres of Bell Bowl Prairie.
More:Preservationists continue to fight to save Bell Bowl Prairie from airport expansion
According to Kerry Leigh, executive director of the Natural Land Institute, the group's lawsuit will be based on claims that the airport’s cargo expansion plans violate the federal endangered species act and that the airport’s environmental assessment was deeply flawed.
"We’ve been talking to legislators and the governor about possible funding for that redesign (of the service road) whether it’s through a federal appropriation or state transportation funding," Leigh said. "There’s money there, but we can’t apply for it. The airport has to do that.”
Chicago Rockford International Airport Executive Director Mike Dunn said the airport's legal counsel is not letting anyone from the airport comment or discuss the Bell Bowl Prairie because of the lawsuit.
The 8,000-year-old prairie, which is located on airport property, is home to indigenous plants and endangered wildlife, including the federally protected Rusty Patched Bumble Bee.
The Greater Rockford Airport Authority agreed to delay construction of a service road through the prairie while the Federal Aviation Administration conducts additional environmental review, which included further analysis by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
Airport officials continue to await a decision from the FAA on when construction can resume.
Beyond the service road, airport officials want to build a 100,000-square-foot air freight facility, ramp expansion and stormwater detention basins.
Officials have said the expansion will create hundreds of construction jobs, up to 600 permanent new jobs and enhance the airport's standing as one of the nation's largest cargo operations.
Ken DeCoster covers business news and features. Contact him at 815-987-1391, kdecoster@rrstar.com or @DeCosterKen.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Future of Bell Bowl Prairie at Rockford airport uncertain amid lawsuit
