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STAND officers announce run for state office  Share
The president Shut This Airport Nightmare Down (STAND) announced that he is seriously considering running for office and the vice-president has made her decision to run for state senator. The announcement was made at the group's meeting on Sept. 24 at the American Legion in Peotone. President George Ochsenfeld is gathering signatures and says he'll likely run for 79th district state representative on the Green Party ticket. Lisa Dugan (D-Kankakee) currently holds the seat. Vice-President Judy Ogalla has decided to throw her hat in the Republican primary senate race for the 11th Congressional District held by Democrat Debbie Halvorson. It was a conversation with Dugan that led Ochsenfeld to seriously consider running for public office.
''I begged Lisa Dugan to speak out against (Governor Pat) Quinn's $110 million plan to purchase land for an airport that hasn't even been approved by the FAA,'' he said. He said he told Dugan that speaking out against the spending did not indicate she was against the airport. It simply meant that she was being fiscally responsible. Her decision was the last straw for Ochsenfeld. He decided he needed to try to make a difference in state politics. ''I am sick of the Democrats and Republicans in Springfield,'' he said. Ochsenfeld said his campaign will focus on three areas: ''green'' jobs, tax reform and resilient local communities. As an example of resilient local communities, he talked about a Green Jobs-Green New York Act that recently passed unanimously in that state's general assembly and by a 52-8 vote in its senate. The bill allocates $112 million in carbon emission funds collected by the state to invest in energizing homes and businesses across the state, training the workforce, performing energy audits and administrating the program. Proponents of the bill say it will put thousands of people to work and save individuals and businesses from across the state billions of dollars annually in energy costs. ''Green jobs are a win-win situation,'' said Ochsenfeld. Ogalla expressed a similar reason to run for office. She feels that she can make a difference and be a voice for the people. ''If we continue to do as we do, we'll get the same results,'' she said. ''We need average, everyday people to get involved.'' Ogalla said she had been asked by several people to run for senator. She finally asked her husband his opinion. ''He told me that I was smarter than 95 percent of the people in office and not afraid to stand up for the things I believed and he thought I should run,'' she said. Ogalla said she felt her background would help her in office. Previously, she worked as project manager at Panduit in Tinley Park and now serves as the office manager for the Will Township Road District. She has been vice-president of STAND for eight years. She's begun collecting signatures. She needs a thousand signatures of registered voters to be placed on the Feb. 2 primary ballot. To illustrate Ogalla's persistence and her lack of fear when standing up for herself and others, Ochsenfeld told an amusing story about the day a pit bull wandered into Ogalla's yard and attacked her dog. She immediately ran out and began hitting the pit bull to get it away from her dog. Eventually, the dog left with its owner, but that wasn't enough for her. She climbed in her truck and chased the owner down at the house and called the police. ''She's not even afraid of a pit bull,'' Ochsenfeld laughed. Dan Proft, Republican candidate for governor, also spoke to the group. ''I am opposed to the third airport,'' said Proft. He said he found it unbelievable that the governor would spend $110 million to purchase land for an airport that is not needed at a time when the state doesn't have funding for the disabled, Medicaid or many other programs. He said he first became familiar with the Peotone project when he was working on a campaign for a state representative. He read an article in the Crete Record and started investigating it. He said there are no economic benefits and it would greatly impact the quality of life for residents. ''The airlines have already said they won't use the airport,'' he said. Proft also criticized the state in several other areas of spending, including the state legislature's recent approval of providing $250 million for the 2016 Olympics in the event that it was held in Chicago. The $250 million would be a guarantee against any losses of the Olympics. ''Our state spending has increased eight times more than our population growth,'' stressed Proft. Ochsenfeld briefly discussed the state's recent move to purchase additional land for the south suburban airport by filing a condemnation suit against three property owners of 280 acres that lie in the footprint of the proposed airport. The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) filed suit against the property owners in Will County court. ''It's unclear whether it's a friendly eminent domain case or whether the owners will fight it,'' said Oshsenfeld. The property is composed of two 80-acre plots and a 120-acre plot near the southwest corner of Will Center and Eagle Lake Roads. Richard and Carol Barbour own 200 acres. The other 80-acre parcel is owned by Lois Barbour, Robert Norman and J. Franklin Norman. Jim Verduin, president of Footprint Residents Against Mandatory Eminent Domain (FRAMED), said a friendly domain case would be a situation where a property owner asked for the eminent domain in order to have the case heard by a jury. In these cases, Verduin said, property owners may have no objection to the land purchase by IDOT but disagree on the price. As an example, Verduin discussed the Hudgins property case that was settled in June. He said the property owner was willing to sell but did not agree on the price. Oshsenfeld said IDOT has said it feels it has the authority to proceed with eminent domain because the Federal Aviation Authority approved a tier 1 study. But Ochsenfeld disagrees. He said the tier 1 approval only granted an airport (authority to conduct) feasibility and environmental impact studies. The FAA has not approved the location for an airport. ''In order to challenge the legitimacy, we need to have a case in which they are fighting eminent domain,'' Ochsenfeld pointed out. Lynn Dill is a reporter for Russell Publications.
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