Richie Daley has argued for years that his purpose in destroying Meigs Field is that he wants to have a park at the location to benefit all the people of the city rather than the rich few who have private planes. While this argument has proven specious over the years simply because the tiny airport was home to such groups as the Tuskeegee Airmen, logic didn't enter into the Mayoral thinking. The Tuskeegee Airmen are a group of veteran African American pilots who take inner city kids on plane rides to teach them about aviation and open the door to career possibilities for them. They used Meigs as the base for their operations.
The Friends of Meigs Field have issued a plan for the land that would provide an airfield, a museum of aviation in keeping with the Museum Campus concept, and some parkland on the lake. And there are Federal programs to fund this action and free up needed funds for the improvement of other inner city park facilities.
But, to be opposed to parks in Chicago is the same as hating motherhood, the St. Patrick's Day parade and the Chicago Cubs. It simply isn't done. Yet, what do we ordinary Chicagoans know about the parks that are available? I would wager that hardly anyone ever heard of the park that is dedicated as the "Chicago Fire Department Fallen Firefighters and Paramedics Memorial Park." Now, that’s a worthwhile dedication if ever there was one.
And where, you might ask, is this tiny vest pocket memorial park? Near the Fire Academy on DeKoven Street at the site of Mrs. O'Leary's barn? Perhaps it might be somewhere near the site of the Chicago Stock Yards Fire of 1934, a blaze that rivaled even the great Chicago fire of 1871 in intensity. Or maybe it was near the location used for the movie, "Backdraft" which glorified the CFD. If you guessed any of these, you'd be wrong.
In fact the Fallen Firefighter and Paramedic Memorial Park is nestled into the lakefront at the southeast edge of McCormick Place's Lakeside Center. It's beautifully landscaped with nice shade trees, benches and paths. It's a peaceful oasis in the center of the hustle and bustle of the convention center. It abuts a small parking lot, though there are much larger spaces for parking nearby. It's easily available by land from the 31st Street turnoff from Lake Shore Drive. And it is right on the lake.
But the most outstanding feature of the park fits into the Mayor's basic idea of where parks should be situated. It is directly across the small watery inlet into Burnham Harbor that separates Meigs Field from McCormick Place. And it’s much easier to access than anything on the peninsula that became Meigs Field after the 1947 Railroad Fair.
Actually, we have been predicting for a long time that the Mayor’s ulterior motive for the destruction of Meigs was to have a casino gambling operation where the tiny airport was once located. He has repeatedly denied this intent. But it’s not surprising to note that the State Legislature, under the guidance of Daley’s Democratic allies in Springfield, has recently passed legislation to award a license for gambling in the City of Chicago. What a surprise it might be if the Mayor were to appoint a "blue ribbon" panel to search for an appropriate site for such a venture! There would be several retired political hacks on the commission, a few active members of the hospitality industry — you can name your favorite — and one or two clergymen to put the appropriate imprimatur on a venture that would be anything but holy.
After due deliberation over a few high priced luncheons, the commission would probably deliver their report to the Mayor indicating three possible sites for the duly authorized land based casino. One would be the rail yard at Roosevelt and Clark streets. Another would be the former U.S. Steel site at 89th Street and Burley on the southeast side, and, of course, the third would be the land that used to be Meigs Field.
There would be public hearings on these locations. The Chinese real estate interests would argue that the Roosevelt site would represent a blockade to the explosive growth of Chinatown and would not be appropriate since they would have to move southward into Bridgeport, the seat of Mayoral power. The residents of the southeast side would argue that they already have a gambling influence from the casinos that are located in Northwest Indiana and that they didn’t need more casino operations in their community. So what’s left? The Meigs Field Site, which wouldn’t, after all, be missed if it were not to be converted into a park to satisfy the Mayor’s aesthetic sensibilities.
If the Mayor felt the need to commune with nature, he would only have to call the Fire Commissioner to get directions to the Chicago Fire Department Fallen Firefighters and Paramedics Memorial Park. And he could easily watch the construction of the casino while he sat on one of those benches. |
