A federal judge has rejected the efforts of a civil lobby to halt the $15bn planned expansion of Chicago O'Hare Airport. This now paves the way for the city to acquire houses and land that

need to be redeveloped to complete the project.
US District Judge David Coar yesterday ruled that while the expansion would adversely affect some residents, the benefits of the expansion to the city greatly outweighed the inconvenience to the few. In his 33-page judgement he said: ‘Simply because there is adverse effect, however, does not mean that expansion must be halted.’
In his ruling, Coar dismissed a federal lawsuit that the expansion opponents filed in 2003. He also refused to let them file a new, amended complaint, but allowed them to seek additional documents under the open-records laws.