Illinois is still in the running for the Superconducting Super Collider as meetings were held this week to inform the public of residential areas which would be affected by the project.

Illinois is one of the seven candidates for the site of the SSC. Other candidates are Arizona, Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas (New York was a candidate, but pulled out due to residential concern).

The meetings were Monday in Aurora and Wednesday in West Chicago.

The supercollider is a particle accelerator (a 10-foot, 53-mile racetrack-like tunnel).

The multi-billion dollar project site will be determined by the U.S. Department of Energy by Jan. 1989. If Illinois is chosen, the SSC will be built in Kane, DuPage and parts of Kendall counties.

Don Etchison, director of the Illinois Department of Energy and Natural Resources, said Illinois is the best choice because the SSC will be based at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia.

“You only need look at Fermilab, its excellent safety record, beautiful grounds and public services to see how the SSC will be viewed,” said Etchison.

Rep. John Countryman, R-DeKalb, said the SSC will be beneficial to DeKalb and NIU because the project will create jobs, bring in physicists to possibly teach at NIU and increase DeKalb County’s population.

Also, Countryman said NIU’s excellent reputation will become nationally known instead of known just in the Midwest.

Congressman Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., supports the SSC being sited in Illinois. He said it not only will help the economic situation in Illinois, but will help to save money on the project.

Hastert said Fermilab has a well-equipped source of protons for the SSC and if the SSC is based there, it will save a half- billion to a billion dollars.

The SSC project will supply up to 7,000 temporary jobs generating up to $819 million and 3,600 permanent new jobs for northeastern Illinois. In addition, 4,400 jobs at Fermilab will be retained, Etchison said.

“Our goal is minimum relocation of houses and businesses. If Illinois is awarded the SSC, we will negotiate with the Department Of Energy to keep land purchases to an absolute minimum,” Etchison said.

Bob Welling, Hastert’s press secretary, said the congressman is concerned with the reaction of Illinois residents. They are going to be a little sensitive but Hastert will do everything he can to inform the public about the SSC.