What’s a Few Endangered Sandhill Cranes Compared to the Olympics?

By Larry Marvet (Illinois Sierra Club)

In the days following the article I received a number of outraged phone calls and emails asking how such development could be allowed in a forest preserve, especially in the habitat of an endangered species. The exact answer is a closely held secret with the Forest Preserve District, as nearly everything has been with respect to this proposal, but many of the facts are known and enlightening: 

• M. K. Pritzker, member of the famous Chicago Hyatt Hotel family, is an equestrian and offering over $12 million free and clear to build the Olympic facility.
• It costs way more than $12 million to build an Olympic equestrian facility—the Sidney equestrian Olympics in 2000 cost about $30 million.
• Free land could close the gap between this available $12 million and $30 million requirement.
• The current president of the Lake County Forest Preserve Board, Bonnie Carter, represents Wauconda voters. Their published response is that they will dismantle some of what they build after the Olympics, that spectators will be bussed into the Preserve rather than have massive parking lots, and that afterwards the facility would not be used for non-horse events.
• I think this last promise is the most interesting, in that Atlanta’s equestrian Olympic facility (now named the Georgia International Horse Park) is scheduled almost every day of the week with horse shows, mountain bike races, hot air balloon jamborees, concerts, and more. I’m not sure how much promising is going to stop the business people of Wauconda from, well, trying to increase their business with a few more events.
• According to a May 28 Daily Herald article by Russell Lissau, the Forest Preserve and the Olympics people did environmental studies before choosing Lakewood. It’s unclear how these studies failed to find (or chose to overlook) endangered Sandhill Crane nests on the cross-country trail or Crane foraging areas where the main stadium is proposed.

• “We’ll put a buffer between these animals and the construction/events/spectators!”
• Wauconda is adjacent to Lakewood FP and would get the most business from the equestrian Olympics—200,000 to 600,000 attendance expected, extensive road widening, hotel building, etc.
• Abbott Laboratories, a main sponsor of the Chicago Olympic bid and active participant in Olympic planning, is headquartered in Lake County.
• As evidenced by the secret negotiations, minimal debate and unanimous vote by the Lake County Board members, Carter has strong control of forest preserve land.
• Birds in Wauconda don’t vote.
• The current Forest Preserve position on their plan mirrors George Bush’s argument for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Preserve—we can do this massive work without affecting nature in any way. And no doubt they will take some precautions, perhaps using smaller bulldozers than normal or leaving a few trees as buffer between the cross-country course and the Sandhill Crane nests.
• “We’ll build new homes (elsewhere) for these precious wild things.”
• “We’ll be very quiet and not disturb them.”
• “Sandhill Cranes are not really endangered, there are plenty of them in other states/countries/planets.”
• “Our development is only on a very small portion of the Preserve, so the Cranes can move their homes very easily.”
• “We will follow the requisite laws and regulations concerning these birds."
• ”What’s more important, a beautiful new equestrian facility for our county or a few birds?”
• "What’s more important, economic enhancement for Wauconda or a few birds?”
• "How can you be against the Olympics?!?!”

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