Readers Respond

AT ISSUE: Columnist Steve Smith supports ending the battle against

anti-airport South County residents and focusing on fighting expansion at

John Wayne Airport.

*

Steve Smith’s article in the Daily Pilot (“It’s time to ditch El Toro

and fight to save John Wayne,” July 1) is a good example of the bias

which the Daily Pilot shows toward the South County anti-airport group.

For a newspaper which purports to serve Newport Beach and Costa Mesa, the

Pilot has consistently favored the anti-airport forces in Irvine and

other South County cities.

Smith’s premise is that if we in Costa Mesa and Newport Beach are only

reasonable and let Irvine have its way, that somehow or other we can

“save” John Wayne Airport. Such a specious argument must have been

designed to lull local residents into a false sense of security.

The truth is that airlines are clamoring to get more flights into John

Wayne. Orange County is such a lucrative market that airlines can look

forward to greater profits whenever the cap is lifted.

We residents of Newport Beach and Costa Mesa can look forward to a

doubling of the number of flights out of John Wayne and, shortly

thereafter, tripling the number of flights.

Such an increase in flights and ground traffic will destroy

residential neighborhoods, thriving commercial areas, Newport Bay itself,

and negatively affect Costa Mesa and Newport Beach.

There is no way that the number of flights out of John Wayne can be

contained without having a second commercial airport at El Toro.

The demand is too great. Any promises to the contrary are wishful

thinking or, more probably, an attempt to covertly support anti-airport

forces. Without El Toro, John Wayne must expand.

There are other onerous results from refusing to accept the gift of El

Toro airport from the federal government, which Smith and several other

columnists in the Pilot have chosen to ignore.

If a nonaviation plan is adopted, Orange County taxpayers will have to

pay for the cleanup at El Toro.

The Navy will clean up El Toro to meet airport or industrial

standards, but will not and cannot pay for a cleanup to comply with

residential or park standards.

If we are seduced into embracing the idea of a “great park” as

promoted by Irvine, Orange County taxpayers will pay for it. Irvine will

get the park, and we taxpayers will get the bill.

Other expenses that Orange County residents will have to pay for are

higher ticket prices at John Wayne (without the competition of a second

airport) and greater street traffic to John Wayne, Los Angeles

International and Ontario airports. If Los Angeles County is successful,

we may have to pay a surcharge on tickets purchased there.

If the Pilot is a responsible, nonbiased journal, as it claims to be,

it will publish a complete analysis of the pro-airport stand, including

the alternate F and alternate G plans contained in the county’s

environmental report, plus the tax implications of rejecting an El Toro

airport.

SHIRLEY A. CONGER

Corona del Mar

It’s too bad more folks in Newport-Mesa, particularly the local

municipal leadership, haven’t tuned into what Steve Smith is saying.

People in Newport-Mesa are watching a golden window of opportunity

slip through their fingers.

Right now, they could combine forces with South County, El Toro Reuse

Planning Authority and county Supervisor Tom Wilson to ensure that

expansion of John Wayne Airport would not happen. Right now they could

decide to support Measure F folks in opposing an airport at El Toro.

Right now, they could help ensure there would be no new, polluting,

noisy, damaging flights at either John Wayne or El Toro.

But “right now” doesn’t last forever.

The clock is ticking toward 2005, when Newport-Mesa will need support

to keep the current limits on John Wayne.

South County has held out the olive branch to Newport-Mesa for months

now, in a vain effort to promote a common solution to a common problem.

But South County doesn’t really need Newport-Mesa to prevent an unwanted,

unneeded, environmentally disastrous airport at El Toro. We have the

muscle we need to do the job without help from Newport-Mesa.

The feeling is growing in South County that we are tired of being

snubbed, and that perhaps, against our best instincts, we should just

shrug our shoulders and walk away from our willingness to also oppose

added flights at John Wayne Airport.

MICHAEL SMITH

Mission Viejo

In Steve Smith’s column, he states that El Toro proponents should give

up on plans for the airport because of the Measure F vote in favor of the

anti-airport activists. But he forgets (or ignores) the fact that twice

Orange County voted for the El Toro airport.

The anti-airport people did not accept those two votes, kept fighting

against it and won the vote in favor of Measure F.

If they did not give up after two votes for the airport, why do they

resist so strongly against proponents fighting again for the airport?

What’s fair is fair!

ELEANORE TRIGHER

Costa Mesa