BY MIKE CETERA
When I first saw that House Minority Leader Tom Cross proposed to honor infamous former Aurora Mayor Paul Egan (hat tip: OneMan) by naming part of Route 30 after him, I thought the idea was as absurd as Egan was for naming a parrot his police chief or inviting Nikita Khrushchev to the city.
But, as it turns out, there long have been calls to honor the mayor -- a one-time Beacon News ad salesman -- in such a manner.
* I have no knowledge of a parrot named Egan -- or Paul for that matter.
A caller to OpenLine made the suggestion earlier this week:
Paul Egan, remember him? He was a write-in mayor at one time. He came into office broke, and he left office broke. He was responsible for bringing bingo to Aurora, and was also responsible for Bypass 30 for the semis to use so they wouldn't have to go through our town. Because of his honesty and some of the things he did for Aurora, I think Bypass 30 should be called Paul Egan Drive. He should be recognized like all mayors are when they do nice things for their towns.
A 2001 letter writer offered a similar plea: "I would say don't name a bridge for Paul Egan but name the whole stretch, including the bridge to where it joins Illinois State Route 47 'Egan Road.'"
Now, decades after his death, the mayor of Aurora from 1953 to 1961 could be honored by having a road named after him -- a road that was rumored he was kept from attending the dedication ceremony for by other politicians of the day.
Egan, of course, is legendary for his famous spats with police chiefs: In his first six years as mayor, Egan hired 12 police chiefs, including a parrot; and Miss Lura Patricia Counts, a female publicist who scheduled her first press conference in a Chicago saloon. Egan also carried signs protesting his own chief outside the downtown station.
Read some interesting back stories we published: on Egan and his wife.
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