NEWS ANALYSIS -- Sometimes, even politicians change

Jenifer Ragland

COSTA MESA -- Orange County Supervisor Jim Silva is finding himself in a

familiar, though perhaps uncomfortable, situation:

He is at odds with public opinion.

Early in his political career in Huntington Beach, the then-city

councilman faced a tough dilemma -- continue support for a controversial

beachfront development or switch his long-standing position after a

citywide vote made it clear that the project wasn’t wanted in Surf City.

Defying conventional wisdom, he became the swing vote to kill the plan.

The vote stunned Silva’s supporters and critics alike.

Now that Measure F has passed in a landslide victory -- and in his own

district by as much as 59% -- will Silva waver and become the swing vote

to doom any change for an El Toro airport?

The quick answer is no, he won’t. At least not now.

Nearly nine years ago, as a city councilman in Huntington Beach, he was

on the verge of a critical vote on the controversial Pierside Village

project -- a proposal to build a $20-million restaurant complex on the

beach near Main Street.

The project was so hated by the city’s residents that it sparked an

initiative drive, Measure C, which passed in November 1990 with nearly 75% of the vote. The ballot measure -- a distant cousin to Measure F --

required a majority vote by residents before anything could be built on

city beaches or in city parks.

At the time, the Huntington Beach City Council had a solid four-member,

pro-development majority, of which Silva was a leader. In July 1991, the

fate of Pierside Village came down to a final, dramatic vote. Yes or no.

Approve the lease for the beachfront land -- and then face a citywide

vote -- or reject the development outright.

After a lengthy public hearing came the deciding moment. And Silva,

expected to vote “yes” along with his pro-growth colleagues, surprisingly

switched his stance and cast a “no” vote.

“Some of the business leaders were surprised at the decision,” said

Huntington Beach Councilman Peter Green, who also opposed Pierside

Village. “I see nothing wrong with a person changing his mind. In fact, I

respected Jim for that.”

After the vote, Silva explained that with Measure C, the populous had

spoken. At the time, he quoted his favorite president, Abraham Lincoln.

“Elected officials are to do for the citizens what they cannot do for

themselves in their own individual capacity,” he said.

Fast-forward one decade. Silva, now a veteran county supervisor, is one

of a three-member pro-El Toro majority on the board. A few years ago,

most of Silva’s district also favored a second county airport at El Toro.

But now, things are different. Measure F, the initiative floated by South

County activists trying to derail the airport plan, passed last week by

nearly a 2-to-1 margin.

According to a Times Orange County analysis, even in Silva’s district --

normally neutral territory on the airport debate -- voters overwhelmingly

favored the measure. Measure F was defeated narrowly in only one of his

district’s cities -- Costa Mesa voted it down by 51% -- according to the

analysis.

Still, Silva is hanging tough for an airport at El Toro.

“I think the voice of the voters is very important and I will support

Measure F,” he said last week. “But I think you have to consider that

this makes the third vote, and it’s not the last vote.”

He also said he can’t be sure Measure F’s victory means the majority of

residents don’t want the airport at El Toro.

“I voted against the Pierside Village project because I felt a majority

of people didn’t want it. In this case, it’s not clear,” Silva said.

“Even the supporters of Measure F admit this had more to do with the

public’s voice in the planning process than in approval of jails or

airports.”

But Silva has not proposed any changes to the airport planning process,

either. Immediately following the vote, he and board chairman Chuck Smith

said publicly that they must continue to move forward and that the

results of Measure F “won’t affect an airport at El Toro.”

When questioned about his statement, Silva responded, “What do you

suggest I do?”

With Measure A -- the 1994 initiative that started the airport planning

process -- still in effect, he said his hands are tied.

Making matters more complicated, one area of his district, Costa Mesa,

supports the airport plan, albeit narrowly. And while Newport Beach is

outside of his district, the bulk of the donations from his 1998 campaign

against Huntington Beach Councilman Dave Sullivan came from Newport Beach

pro-airport forces. Silva will be up for reelection in 2002.

As for what he should do next, South County officials have some ideas.

“Anything can be fixed, but the county has to change the way it does

business and start telling the truth,” said Meg Waters, spokeswoman for

the El Toro Reuse Planning Authority. “The process can’t be fixed with

more PR.”

She added that Measure A doesn’t require the county to approve a bad

airport plan, which is what she contends has been done.

Leonard Kranser, who helped lead the campaign for Measure F, said the

county paid for its past mistakes when the initiative won its landslide

victory last week. And rather than simply dismiss the loss, county

officials ought to find the lesson, he said.

“Everything they have done has been politically motivated, without regard

to legitimate concerns of the surrounding community,” Kranser said.

“Silva’s up for reelection in two years and I think he would do well to

go with his constituents on this issue,” he added.

Mark Petracca, chairman of the political science department at UC Irvine,

said Silva’s situation goes to an inherent contradiction in democratic

theory.

“The contradiction is between the expectation that leaders will follow

and the expectation that leaders will lead,” he said. “The question is,

under what conditions are leaders more likely to follow, and under what

conditions will the public expect their leaders to lead?

“This could very well be a rare opportunity for Silva to behave like a

statesman and provide leadership for the board, driven by an overwhelming

expression of constituent support for Measure F. Silva doesn’t have to be

a weather vane. This was not a public opinion poll. This was an

election.”

But Bruce Nestande, president of Citizens for Jobs & the Economy, which

spearheaded the “No on F” campaign, maintains that Silva should stand by

his position on the airport.

“Measure F, regardless of what the anti-airport people want to claim at

this point, was not a clear referendum against the airport,” Nestande

said. “People had a smorgasbord of issues on which to vote. How one could

conclude that this is an anti-airport vote mystifies me.”

He added that anti-airport forces admitted publicly they crafted Measure

F in order to gain more support in North County, where voters may not

have turned down another initiative strictly on the airport.

“They chose not to make it just an up or down on the airport, and now

that they won, they are saying that it was all about the airport,” he

said. “I don’t accept that and I don’t think Jim Silva will accept that.”

To that, Kranser said if Measure F wasn’t about El Toro, then was it just

a coincidence that Newport Beach -- clearly the most pro-El Toro area in

the county -- was also the city that most soundly defeated the measure?

As the debate rages on, Waters suggested Silva take this piece of advice

from his favorite president: “As long as government tells the truth, the

country is safe.”