Orange County Register, Metro Section June 4, 1997
From the Register web site at http://www.ocregister.com

Poll: 45% back El Toro airport

SURVEY: The random sampling also yields no majority support for the county's reuse planning to date.

By MARY ANN MILBOURN The Orange County Register

Fewer than half of Orange County residents favor plans for an airport at the El Toro Marine base, according to county poll results released Tuesday. The random telephone survey of 600 heads of households showed that 45 percent supported the county's plans for an El Toro airport, 33 percent opposed it and 22 percent didn't know.

Responses to a second question, in which people were asked whether they support El Toro planning in general without specific mention of the airport, were more negative. Forty-eight percent opposed county planning to date for reuse of the Marine base, 34 percent supported it and 18 percent didn't know.

County officials have cited the results of two elections as a growing public mandate for an airport.

In 1994, the Measure A El Toro airport initiative passed narrowly, 51 percent to 49 percent. Last year, county voters resoundingly rejected -- 60 percent to 40 percent -- the Measure S initiative to stop the airport.

Airport opponents say the new report calls the election results into question. "What the numbers show is the support for the airport is not all that strong," said Bill Kogerman, head of a grass-roots anti-airport effort. "People are starting to look at what else is feasible."

Newport Beach Councilman Tom Edwards, whose city has been in the vanguard of the airport movement, played down the results. He said that when the 45 percent in favor of an airport is combined with half of the undecided respondents, the figure jumps to 56 percent -- close to last year's 60 percent Measure S vote. "I don't see (the new poll) as a big deal," Edwards said.

The $10,000 poll was authorized by county staff to determine what issues need to be addressed in a planned El Toro public-information campaign. The poll was conducted April 7-10 by Pacific Research & Strategies Inc. of Claremont. There is a 4 percent margin of error.