El Toro foes say county can’t skirt measure

Susan McCormack

While some have suggested the county Board of Supervisors is

considering joining the Orange County Regional Airport Authority in an

attempt to circumvent an antiairport initiative, one El Toro foe claims

it’s not possible.

Len Kranser, a proponent of the Safe and Healthy Communities Initiative,

said he anticipated the board’s move to join the authority last spring

and made provisions for it in the initiative.

The initiative, if passed by voters on March 7, would require two-thirds

of county voters to approve any addition to or the creation of an

airport, large jail or hazardous waste landfill.

The initiative explicitly states that it requires voter approval

regardless of what entity is developing or proposing such a project,

Kranser said.

The initiative reads that any such “act by the County of Orange ... in

whatever capacity ... [including] the formation of any other governmental

or quasi-governmental entity, the formation of any nonprofit entity and

any other legislative action” is subject to the two-thirds voter

approval.

Kranser also said the initiative does not allow the board to make

legislative changes that may help it bypass the initiative before the

measure is voted upon in March.

During the past two weeks, the board and the Orange County Regional

Airport Authority have taken steps toward merging. The board voted 3-2 on

Tuesday to “direct staff to ... set forth the terms and conditions of

membership in [the authority] and report back to the board for approval.”

The airport authority voted last week to form a subcommittee to “further

research” the feasibility of having a joint-powers authority operate

county airports.

But Barbara Foster, spokeswoman for the airport authority, said no

decisions have been made as to whether the board and her group will join

forces.

“It’s premature to even say anything definitive,” Foster said. “Nor is

anyone sure that this what we want to do -- we’re just fact-finding.”Don

Hughes, assistant to Supervisor Jim Silva, said the board will make a

final decision on joining the authority after it, too, does some

fact-finding and “all pertinent questions are answered.”

Those questions include several brought up by antiairport supervisor Todd

Spitzer, who complained at the board meeting that the board’s attorneys

and chief executive officer were not consulted before the item was put on

the agenda.

Spitzer said legal counsel should be sought to determine how much county

money may be given to the pro-airport group and also how much of its

authority over the county’s airports the board is legally able to give

up.

While Smith and Silva have asserted that their reasons for suggesting the

board join the authority are to strengthen the board’s communications

network with pro-airport cities and residents, Kranser said he sees the

move as a last-ditch effort to find a loophole around the initiative.

“I think the board knows the initiative is going to pass,” Kranser said.

“I can think of no other reason the board would want to give away

authority over El Toro or John Wayne unless it is a desperate attempt to

circumvent the initiative.”