BY MARTIN ZABELL, Times of Northwest Indiana Correspondent
HAMMOND | The Lake County Convention & Visitors Bureau formally supported the study of the proposed Illiana Expressway and informally backed Chicago's bid for the 2016 Olympics on Thursday.
The statements of support came at the bureau's monthly board meeting.
The board's discussion about the Illiana Expressway was planned, as employees had drafted a resolution supporting the proposal. The expressway has been envisioned by economic development and transportation experts for years.
The proposed road currently being debated in the Indiana General Assembly would start eastward from Interstate 57 in Illinois, cross I-65 between the Crown Point and Lowell interchanges and, when reaching LaPorte County, would loop northward to hook up with the Indiana Toll Road near Michigan City.
The visitors' bureau's resolution says the area's two major east-west roads -- I-80/94 and I-294 -- are "seriously congested," and an Illiana Expressway would help relieve traffic problems. At Thursday's meeting, visitors' bureau President/CEO Speros Batistatos added that an additional east-west highway is essential to future efforts to boost tourism.
"This is vital to us," he said. "We're economically dependent on a highway infrastructure."
However, both Batistatos and board chairman Victor DeMeyer emphasized that the resolution, which was supported unanimously by the board, only formally backed "the study" of the expressway.
The board's discussion about the 2016 Olympics was not planned and came up just before the meeting adjourned. Batistatos and DeMeyer said the topic had come up in a conversation, so they decided to talk about it publicly.
Currently, Chicago and Los Angeles are the finalists for the United States Olympic Committee's endorsement. The winner will compete against several other cities for the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) support. The IOC's decision is expected in 2009.
Batistatos noted that Lake County tourism had a boost as a result of Chicago hosting the 1994 World Cup soccer championships, and DeMeyer said an Olympics in Chicago would result in hotel rooms throughout the area being filled up.
"We should not underestimate the importance of getting the Olympics," Batistatos said, adding that the visitors bureau would consider trying to host one or more events and would not rule out supporting construction of new athletic facilities.
Board members were enthusiastic about the prospect of a local Olympics, and Batistatos said the board will be asked at a later date to support Chicago's bid formally.
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