Ex-mayor to remain as consultant for Newport on JWA issues
Tom Edwards, a former Newport Beach mayor and Citizen of the Year, will remain in his role as a consultant for the city on John Wayne Airport issues for an additional year.
Edwards, 69, who also works as an attorney, has been a consultant for Newport Beach since 2008 on issues involving the airport, which sits on unincorporated land adjacent to Newport Beach, Irvine and Santa Ana.
His duties include following up on noise concerns, monitoring activities at the Federal Aviation Administration, keeping tabs on trends in aviation and meeting with community members to explain often complex issues related to the long relationship between Newport and the airport, according to a city staff report.
“I’m sort of their arm when they need to get out and meet with different groups,” Edwards said. “The airport is still one of the most significant issues that faces the city. It has been in the past and it will be in the future.”
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The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to extend Edwards’ contract through March 2017. Under the contract, Edwards will continue to receive $5,000 per month for his first 25 hours of work. Every additional hour will be billed at a rate of $300 and will require approval from City Manager Dave Kiff.
Edwards can bill the city up to $70,000 through March 2017, according to the contract.
Kiff wrote in the staff report that last year’s contract with Edwards “resulted in improved communication with the community regarding JWA issues and also resulted in greater direct attention being given to JWA issues.”
Edwards has lived in Newport Beach for about 40 years and helped negotiate the settlement agreement with John Wayne Airport in 1985 that established a flight curfew and limits on noise and the number of passengers and departures. Newport Beach is the only community with an agreement that specifically addresses airport noise, Edwards said.
“This is an issue that’s very dear to my heart,” Edwards said. “It’s important that we continue to protect what we have in Newport.”
Edwards and the city will face another hurdle this year with the FAA’s proposal to replace traditional ground-based air traffic procedures with satellite-based technology at 11 Southern California airports, including John Wayne. The FAA has said the Next Generation Air Transportation System could save fuel, reduce emissions and delays and shorten flight times by establishing flight plans that are less dispersed than they have been.
However, some Newport residents worry that flights could become more concentrated above their homes.
“With NextGen and higher levels of operation at JWA, Tom’s work continues to be a high priority,” Kiff wrote in the staff report.
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Hannah Fry, hannah.fry@latimes.com
Twitter: @HannahFryTCN
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