AWG, back off before city claims JWA...

AWG, back off before city claims JWA

Call off the dogs.

The Newport Beach-based Airport Working Group recently settled

their El Toro-related lawsuit against the Department of Defense,

which cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars. The AWG is

suing the city of Irvine and is threatening to sue the Orange County

Local Agency Formation Commission, also known as LAFCO, over Irvine’s

annexation of the former El Toro Marine base.

The working group has yet to give up its lawsuit against the

county over Measure W. The group’s money comes principally from the

city of Newport Beach. In recent years, the City Council has handed

the group nearly $4 million of taxpayer money. The Airport Working

Group is Newport Beach’s hired surrogate in the airport battle. Its

leaders and consultants are the attack dogs that do the city’s

political and legal dirty work.

On Tuesday, the Newport Beach City Council voted to ask Tom

Wilson, the chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, to

dialogue with them about the city taking control of John Wayne

Airport.

We have a suggestion before supervisors begin considering whether

Newport Beach’s claims to John Wayne are any greater than those of

Costa Mesa or Irvine, which also border the airport, or the several

other cities in the flight paths, or the county that built the

airport.

We urge Wilson and the other supervisors to file away the proposal

until the Airport Working Group ends every one of its El Toro related

lawsuits. If Newport Beach wants to talk, a precondition should be to

call off the dogs.

LEONARD KRANSER

Dana Point

Great park plan is a great waste of assets

My gratitude to D.L. Warwick for an articulate letter (“Great Park

plan scamming taxpayers out of real estate” Mailbag), stating the

facts about the Great Park plan scamming taxpayers out of the real

estate that ran Nov. 20.

I truly believe south Orange County has outspent, outsmarted and

manipulated our side of the issue with the help of developers who

want to develop this property. Recently, I attended the Orange County

Local Agency Formation Commission meeting where 28 individuals voiced

their concerns about Irvine’s annexation of the former El Toro Marine

base. Five members of the commission, who represent only 30% of the

county population, voted for the Irvine annexation, while the other

two felt their were many unanswered questions and said they needed

more time to gather information. Those two members represent the

remaining 70% of the county, yet have a minority on the commission.

They voted “no.”

At this meeting, we were advised it would cost Orange County

taxpayers 2% on their taxes for this new plan for South County.

RACHEL PEREZ-HAMILTON

Costa Mesa