Flight limits over Obama's Chicago home

by John McCormick and Sara Olkon

When Air Force One touches down Friday evening in Chicago, there will once again be a chance to see heavily armed motorcades and be surprised by unexpected appearances by the most famous and powerful Chicagoan.

It will also mark the start of an entirely new experience for the city: hosting an extended visit by a sitting president.

In the past, presidential visits have typically lasted a couple hours, just long enough for the nation's top executives to land at O'Hare International Airport, ride a chopper downtown and appear before some television cameras.

This trip, however, is expected to last three days and will offer the first glimpse of what are likely to become fairly routine hometown visits by President Barack Obama and his family. The return to Chicago will come a day after scheduled stops Thursday in East Peoria, Ill., and Springfield.

In many ways, the Obama family's weekend stay in Chicago will look like the seven-week transition between the November election and January move to Washington.

There will almost certainly be morning workouts near Obama's South Side home, street closures as his motorcade zips across town and possibly a Valentine's Day dinner out for the First Couple at one of their favorite restaurants.

But there will be some new wrinkles. Security is almost certain to be even tighter than it was when Obama was last in the city Jan. 4, and there will be the potential to catch a glimpse of Air Force One and other presidential details.

Obama's neighbors say it is hard to miss his pending return. Additional concrete barriers and metal barricades popped up this week on his block and a nearby main street. Neighbors have also observed several additional Chicago police officers and Secret Service agents.

"It's easier to get in to see my parents when he's away," said Abdul Ali, whose parents live near Obama.

Ali, like many of Obama's neighbors, said he does not mind such security provisions as snipers on area roof-tops. Others, however, are less excited about the return of Obama's security bubble.

"I don't think people realize what a horrible inconvenience it is," said neighbor Vicki Dooley.

"I was there first," she said, adding that she plans to move to avoid living in a "police state."

As reported in a previous Tribune story, Dooley's 16-year-old son had been trying to charge strangers $10 each to get a better view of the Obama home from the family's balcony. But Dooley said she made him stop. "I told him not to let strangers into our place anymore," she said.

Obama's weekend in Chicago will follow a day trip Thursday from Washington to Downstate Illinois and back to the White House, where he will spend the night.

He is expected to visit a plant operated by Caterpillar Inc., the heavy equipment maker that recently announced 22,000 job cuts. Later in the day, Obama will travel to Springfield, where he will give a speech as part of a celebration of the 200th birthday of Abraham Lincoln, one of his heroes.

When Obama leaves Springfield, it will be the second time he has departed from there aboard Air Force One. His first-ever flight on the presidential plane was from Springfield to Washington in 2005, when George Bush offered the then-freshman senator a ride after the dedication of the Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum.

One of the weekend highlights for the First Couple will likely be Valentine's Day, a holiday they take seriously. A year ago, amid a fierce nomination fight with Hillary Clinton, Obama took time off from the campaign to take his wife to dinner.

If they dine out, one possibility is Spiaggia, a stylish and expensive Italian restaurant where they have traditionally celebrated Valentine's Day.

The best bet for an Air Force One landing is O'Hare International Airport, followed by a motorcade to the South Side or a short helicopter flight to a landing pad near the family's home.

During the campaign, Obama almost exclusively used Midway Airport. But its longest runway is barely long enough for the Boeing 757 he used for his campaign. The two 747s typically deployed as Air Force One are larger and heavier.

The Federal Aviation Administration has already issued a notice creating temporary flight restrictions because of Obama's visit, limiting private pilots from getting too close to his home. All airspace from the ground up to 18,000 feet is included for miles around.