County gearing up for some plane talk

Cindy Frazier

The Orange County Board of Supervisors has decided to rejoin the El

Toro Reuse Planning Authority, after being invited to do so by the 10

cities that make up the agency.

The cities-- including Laguna Beach -- all oppose a long-sought

airport at the site. They aren’t taking any chances that an airport

plan could once again gain traction at the former Marine Corp. air

base.

Adding the county to the roster of anti-airport entities is

important in order to present a united front against an airport plan,

according to the agency’s staff.

“With a potential debate looming in Sacramento about the need for

more airport capacity in Southern California, it will be important

for Orange County to adopt a strong and unified posture regarding El

Toro,” states a staff report.

“By rejoining [the agency], the Orange County government will

eliminate any doubt about the wishes of the people of Orange County

regarding the future of El Toro. It will hasten the day when [the

agency] can declare its mission accomplished and formally dissolve.”

Executive Director Paul Eckles says his agency is ready for more

battles with pro-airport forces.

Although the 4,700-acre property has been sold to a residential

developer -- and the city of Irvine has taken over planning for a

voter-approved park at the old air base -- the Los Angeles City

Council recently voted overwhelmingly to use any means, including

litigation, to force an airport to be built.

The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners met this week, and

the El Toro issue was on their closed-session agenda. That means a

lawsuit may be in the works, Eckles says.

Two bills in the state legislature also appear to be paving the

way for a possible takeover of the airbase for regional airport use.

AB 1197 by Assemblyman Mike Gordon of El Segundo calls for the

creation of a regional aviation commission to oversee existing

airports and ensure that cargo and passengers are distributed among

them.

That bill states that the aviation commission would not be

involved in creating any new airports.

Senator Richard Alarcon’s bill, SB 32, “would declare the intent

of the Legislature to establish the Los Angeles County Regional

Airport Authority.”

Both bills are in committee.

Eckles fears that such a regional aviation commission or authority

could lead to renewed pressure for additional airport facilities --

and that the old El Toro air base would be at the top of the list.

The El Toro Reuse Planning Authority was founded in 1994 to

oversee planning of the site, shortly after the closure of the base

was announced. The county was originally a part of the agency, but

rancor over the airport concept caused a rift, and the county

withdrew from the agency, which then dissolved.

The planning authority was reconstituted a year later by the

cities of Irvine and Lake Forest, and they were joined by the cities

of Dana Point, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Mission Viejo, Laguna

Beach, Laguna Woods, Aliso Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita.

Cities whose representatives have lobbied for an El Toro airport

use -- such as Newport Beach and Fullerton -- are not part of the

reuse planning agency.

Laguna Beach currently pays about $44,000 a year to support the

agency, according to staff member Teri Fitzpatrick. That is the

amount that each member agency pays for one vote on the panel.

Each city in the planning authority must formally approve the

county’s rejoining it, which the Laguna Beach City Council did at its

May 3 meeting. Other cities are following suit, and the county is

expected to be formally included by June, Fitzpatrick said.

The county will have one vote, with board Chairman Bill Campbell

appointed to represent the county on the agency board, with

Supervisor Tom Wilson as alternate.