NEWS - May 2005

El Toro Info Site report, May 31, 2005

El Toro base photos


OC Register editorial May 29, 2005
"Hijacking the Great Park, episode III"

El Toro Info Site report, May 28, 2005
Flying to the East Coast

El Toro Info Site report, May 27, 2005
The Coad's are still messing with El Toro

OC Register, May 27, 2005
"Great Park budget OKd"


El Toro Info Site report, May 26, 2005
Lennar on El Toro transfer


LA Times, May 26, 2005
"LAX Braces for Summer Travelers"


El Toro Info Site report, May 25, 2005
LAX noise bill advances in Legislature


El Toro Info Site report, May 25, 2005
Great Park Corp Board meets tomorrow


El Toro Info Site report, May 23, 2005
El Toro Veterans Memorial planning sessions


LA Times, May 21, 2005
"FAA Approves LAX Modernization Plan"


Antelope Valley Press May 19, 2005 Web posted May 20
"Election sparks hope for [Palmdale] airport"


Daily Breeze, May 20, 2005
"Villaraigosa plans LAX upheaval"


El Toro Info Site report, May 19, 2005 late
Omitted document stirs up ALUC meeting


El Toro Info Site report, May 19, 2005
The news is no news, yet


El Toro Info Site report, May 18, 2005
Hahn defeated for reelection

El Toro Info Site report, May 17, 2005

No report from yesterday’s Los Angeles meeting


LA Times, May 17, 2005
"Great Park Board Member Quits"


El Toro Info Site report, May 16, 2005
What's LA's basis for a lawsuit?


Daily Pilot editorial, May 15, 2005
"Quit meddling, Los Angeles"


OC Register, May 15, 2005
“Closed bases often not turned over quickly”

Orange County Business Journal, May 14, 2005, dated May 16
"Sim Calls for Overhaul of Great Park Planning in Letter of Resignation "

El Toro Info Site report, May 13, 2005
BRAC closure list released this morning; no SoCal airport candidates named

El Toro Info Site report, May 13, 2005
OC residents strongly oppose LA operation of an airport at El Toro.

El Toro Info Site report, May 12, 2005
LA agendizes airport lawsuit; ETRPA advises them to back off

OC Register, May 12, 2005
“Airport vote's effect unclear”

Daily Pilot, May 12, 2005
“Vote may reopen local airport row”

OC Register, May 11, 2005
"L.A. eyes an El Toro airport"

El Toro Info Site Report, May 11, 2005 - updated
Los Angeles renews El Toro quest

Union-Tribune, May 10, 2005
“Airport authority staff favors expanding Lindbergh's Terminal 2”

El Toro Info Site report, May 9, 2005
Blogger promotes new OC airport sites. We don't.


LA Times Business, May 8, 2005 posted May 9
"High-and-Dry Areas Vie for 'Inland Ports'"


LA Times, May 8, 2005
"Allied City, Base Fear Ax"


LA Times, May 7, 2005
"City Wants Pentagon to Close Naval Station"


Gazettes.com, May 6, 2005
Long Beach “Airport EIR Study Gets Fast Track”

El Toro Info Site report, May 5, 2005
Gordon’s airport noise bill amended; will apply only to LAX

El Toro Info Site report, May 5, 2005
Local airports report first quarter traffic

El Toro Info Site report, May 4, 2005
Lake Forest, San Diego oppose regional airport bills

LA Times, May 3, 2005
"Candidates Disagree on Future of L.A. Airport"

OC Great Park Corp PR newswire, May 2, 2005
"Six Distinguished Professionals to Serve on Orange County Great Park Design Jury Panel "

New York Times, May 1, 2005 posted May 2
"Airports less than eager to make room for big new Airbus"


Click here for last month's news stories

towerEl Toro Info Site report, May 31, 2005

El Toro base photos

 

I recently roamed around El Toro with a couple of journalists working on a military base closure story. Most things had not changed much, or had deteriorated since last year when we posted several El Toro pictures on this site. It was a chance to get some new photos of the former air station.

This time, I took a picture of the base theater where the Navy held a contentious March 2000 public hearing with several hundred airport opponents.


A celebratory community open house is planned on the runways after the transfer of title in July. In the interim, check our pictures of the base as it is today.

 

The Legacy Project, a Great Park Corp sponsored group of professional photographers, will present an exhibit The Edge of Air showing “documentary and aesthetically oriented photographs of the now-shuttered MCAS El Toro, and its transition into the Orange County Great Park” at the Irvine Fine Arts Center from June 12 through July 16.
 


OC Register editorial May 29, 2005
"Hijacking the Great Park, episode III"

"The warning signs have been posted and they keep getting brighter and more urgent. Irvine Councilman Larry Agran and his allies are grabbing control of the former El Toro Marine Corps Air Station and turning the development of the Great Park and its hundreds of millions of dollars in resources into the province of a small cadre of Irvine insiders."

"Dick Sim, the retired Irvine Co. executive, and one of only two members of the Great Park Corp. Board of Directors with development experience, resigned from the board earlier this month in frustration at the lack of proper management procedures. This is stunning, given Sim's experience, reputation for fairness and apolitical nature."

One of Sim's issues was "the elimination of the committee system."  Another "when the board voted to spend $600,000 to hold a design competition for the park. Sim couldn't understand the rush to do so, given that a new report found 1,000 toxic waste sites, some of which would take 50 years to clean up. Why spend the money for design work before anyone knows what can be built where?"

"Sim believes this design competition to be a total waste" . . ."And he was angered by the no-bid contract proposed by the board to be awarded to Forde and Mollrich for public relations. 'That's just for a PR effort,' he said. 'What's our mission? To build a park. We don't need to sell it to anybody. Funds aren't unlimited.'"

Click for the entire editorial.

For more, including a link to the entire Great Park Corporation budget and organizational structure, click here.

El Toro Info Site report, May 28, 2005
Flying to the East Coast

JetBlue flies from Long Beach, Ontario, and just added non-stop service from Burbank to New York’s JFK airport. Could Orange County enjoy such convenience?

The only non-stop service from John Wayne to the east coast is on Continental Airlines to Newark, a good airport for accessing the “Big Apple” but not always the best gateway for connections to Europe.  Continental’s prices are higher than JetBlue’s. There are no non-stops from OC to Washington, Philadelphia or Boston.

JetBlue flies A320 aircraft on its Burbank-NYC trip and presumably could use the same planes from Orange County where A320’s are regularly employed for thousands of JWA flights. Burbank’s runways – at 5800 and 6800 feet – are somewhat longer than JWA’s current 5700 foot main runway.

Courtney Wiercioch, Deputy Airport Director for Public Affairs, tells us that Jet Blue has not applied for slots at John Wayne. The airport has a waiting list of six new carriers with Air Canada holding seniority in the line. Wiercioch also says JWA’s existing airlines, like Southwest Air, “would love to provide more flights.”

John Wayne Airport is constrained to 10.3 million annual passengers (MAP) which can grow to 10.8 MAP under an agreement negotiated between the County and Newport Beach. It is operating at a million passengers below the current limit.

Wiercioch says the terminal size is the constraint keeping management from allocating more slots right now, primarily because of space recently committed to security screening. Expansion plans are in the works.


El Toro Info Site report, May 27, 2005
The Coad's are still messing with El Toro

In January, unseated Supervisor Cynthia Coad and her husband Tom went to Los Angeles to urge the City Council to butt into the Navy's sale of El Toro.  They supported the concept of a Los Angeles International Airport at El Toro.

Earlier this month, the duo made the rounds of congressional offices in Washington, with a representative of a Native American group from Orange County, to talk up Indian use of land at the former base.

Under the Base Closure and Realignment Act, (BRAC), Native Americans have priority claims on excess federal land before its disposal. We presume that the Coads were trying to delay completion of the sale, arguing that the Navy's compliance with the BRAC process was flawed in this regard.

By now, the Coad's should accept the wishes of the majority of county voters for the non-aviation reuse of El Toro. If they are so interested in Indian affairs they could help raise money for a Native American cultural center in the Great Park museum district.

OC Register, May 27, 2005 - updated
"Great Park budget OKd"

"The Great Park board of directors unanimously approved an $8.8 million budget Thursday for fiscal year 2005-06. The money will come from development fees."

"The board also approved the selection of a six-member jury that will be charged with evaluating the final contestants for the park design. A separate jury will winnow the submissions to six finalists."

Columnist Frank Mickadeit added his spin
on the meeting. "The park board is moving dangerously toward eliminating a strict open-bid policy for the hundreds of millions of dollars in future public-works contracts."

Website Editor: Much of the discussion consisted of Directors' inquiries about GPC plans to spend heavily on PR and outreach items such as two "mail-back' opinion surveys at $125,000 each, $40,000 for phone and Internet surveys, $429,000 on three quarterly and one annual "Benchmark Report" brochures, $100,000 split between "Legacy" photographic documentation of the base reuse and a "History" project, $50,000 on "Promotional materials", and "needs assessment". The budget also includes $255,250 for "Helicopter and vehicle leases for Site tours, business travel and expenses for 5 site visits with 4 Directors plus staff per visit, membership in Chamber of Commerce, mileage reimbursement and other meetings/seminar costs."

Click here for the budget that was approved unanimously.

El Toro Info Site report, May 26, 2005
Lennar on El Toro transfer

Bob Santos, the Lennar executive with direct control over the company's El Toro development provided a status report to the Great Park Corp meeting today. He made these comments::

Lennar and the Navy are on schedule for a July 12 transfer of title.

Most of the company's recent discussions with the Navy have been about Los Angeles and how the impending close of escrow might affect the status of any litigation.

Santos said "Most of the news seems to be good." Lennar is hoping that in LA, "cooler heads will prevail."

Also today, it was reported that Lennar plans an invitation-only celebration on July 12 if Navy officials can make that date. A big community open house at the former base is contemplated for Saturday, July 16.

LA Times, May 26, 2005
"LAX Braces for Summer Travelers"
"A record number of international passengers is expected starting Memorial Day. Other airports also prepare for a busy season."

"Low airfares, a weak U.S. dollar and an expanding array of flights to destinations around the globe are expected to contribute to record international traffic at LAX this summer."

"Airports throughout Southern California are bracing for record passenger traffic from Memorial Day through Labor Day. And airline officials nationwide expect the busiest summer season since the previous peak in 2001."

"The record-breaking travel season at LAX comes as Mayor-elect Antonio Villaraigosa grapples with what to do with his predecessor's $11-billion modernization plan for the facility. The proposal, which faces litigation in state court this summer, probably is years away from being built, and its first phase wouldn't address some of the most glaring deficiencies at LAX, including crowded terminals."

Click for the entire article.

El Toro Info Site report, May 25, 2005
LAX noise bill advances in Legislature

Assembly Bill 556 moved another step towards passage in Sacramento this week. The bill codifies into state law existing regulations regarding airport noise standards and procedures for obtaining and renewing airport noise variances and applies this specifically to LAX, prohibits Los Angeles from operating LAX unless it receives an airport noise variance from the Department of Transportation (Caltrans), and expands requirements for public hearings associated with this permit.

Recorded support for the bill came almost entirely from the Los Angeles area. There was no recorded opposition. Councilmember Mimi Walters from Laguna Niguel voted against the bill in her Assembly committee.

El Toro Info Site report, May 25, 2005
Great Park Corp Board meets tomorrow

The Board of the Great Park Corp meets tomorrow, Thursday, to amend the 2004-05 budget and approve a 2005-06 budget. The current fiscal year's budget is amended to $2,122,250. The amount or breakdown of the new budget is not reported in the online agenda.

A media advisory puts the budget at $10 million.

The $10 million budget forms the framework for the development of the Orange County Great Park.  It lists priority programs for the infrastructure development and preparation of the property for development.  It also provides funding for on-going public outreach efforts that informs Orange County residents about the progress of the Park’s development and enables them to participate in the Park’s development.

 

A press briefing will be held Thursday at 12:30 PM in the Conference and Training Center at Irvine City Hall.

The public is welcome at the Board meeting which commences at 1:00 PM in the same location..

El Toro Info Site report, May 23, 2005
El Toro Veterans Memorial planning sessions

A 2-hour Planning Session is being held for veterans groups and interested veterans/individuals.
When: Monday, May 23 from 5 to 7 p.m.
Where: Irvine City Hall - First Floor
Anyone who would like to attend should respond to Elizabeth Pearson
Please provide: Your name, group you are representing, address and e-mail address

A second planning date - an all day Stakeholders Conference - is scheduled for June 18 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Chapman University.  If you cannot attend the first session, but would like to receive an invitation to the Conference, email Elizabeth Pearson.

LA Times, May 21, 2005 - updated
"FAA Approves LAX Modernization Plan"

"Federal officials signed off on the city's $11-billion modernization plan for Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, allowing construction to start and forcing Mayor-elect Antonio Villaraigosa to make the issue a top priority."

"Villaraigosa said he had spoken with U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta after the decision was announced and told him that he opposed some of the plan's major components. Villaraigosa wants to eliminate a controversial passenger check-in center near the San Diego Freeway."

"'He indicated that the decision was well on its way, and that they could not delay it because it was all ready to be issued,' Villaraigosa said of the conversation."

The Federal Aviation Administration . . .  decision Friday does not mean the city must follow the plan to the letter. . . or take any action at all." It makes changes more difficult.

The mayor-elect said, "'I believe that we need to develop a regional approach to expanding capacity,' adding that he thinks other airports should absorb some of the growth in passenger traffic."

Click for the entire Times article.


The LA Daily News amplifies on the story with "Hahn's messy legacy". The paper notes that
"Villaraigosa, like most other elected officials, supports the proposed so-called 'green light' projects, which include reconfiguring the south airstrip, a consolidated rental car center, and some transportation improvements."

Website Editor: Meanwhile, an expected lawsuit against the federal government, to block the sale of El Toro, was not filed as anticipated this week.

Antelope Valley Press May 19, 2005 Web posted May 20
"Election sparks hope for [Palmdale] airport"

"The election of Antonio Villaraigosa to the Los Angeles mayoral post is drawing applause from Antelope Valley Democrats and hope from other leaders that the new mayor will push development of Palmdale's airport."

"On his campaign Web site the mayor-elect speaks of his support for expanding the airport. 'We must build a major airport north of the (San Fernando) Valley in Palmdale and expand to the east at Ontario Airport,' Villaraigosa said in the statement."

More . . . 

Daily Breeze, May 20, 2005 - updated
"Villaraigosa plans LAX upheaval"

"Dramatic changes are in store for Los Angeles International Airport with this week's mayoral victory of Antonio Villaraigosa, who is promising to shred the current LAX modernization plan and replace most of the commissioners whom the man he defeated, James Hahn, appointed to run the airport department".

"Los Angeles city attorneys believe that scrapping part of the master plan would trigger years of new environmental reviews because the controversial projects contain mitigations that apply to the entire plan. The city has spent $146 million and 10 years developing airport modernization scenarios pushed by Hahn and his predecessor, Richard Riordan."

Website Editor: The impact of Villaraigosa's actions on litigation planned by Los Angeles to block the El Toro sale is unclear at this moment. He takes office on July 1 but is already influencing city policy.

More . . .

El Toro Info Site report, May 19, 2005 late
Omitted document stirs up ALUC meeting

Tonight's Airport Land Use Commission meeting proceeded smoothly with the approval of minutes, reelection of the same commissioners and officers for another year and leafing through correspondence in the commissioners' meeting packets. When the point at which staff was supposed to provide a status report on their work to rescind the El Toro Airport Environs Land Use Plan (AELUP) was passed by without comment, the mood changed.

Alternate Commissioner Len Kranser called for the staff report. He noted that the minutes showed Commission Chairman Gerald Bresnahan's "intention to confer with County Counsel to determine the appropriate course of action" regarding removal of the AELUP restrictions. Would he please advise the commission on these discussions?

Bresnahan said that the County Counsel's opinion could not be discussed in open session since it concerned a letter marked as confidential - "Attorney Client Privilege". Neither could it be discussed in closed session because it did not deal with litigation or other matters appropriate for closed sessions. Consequently, it could not be discussed. Bresnahan was unsure that he ever had to agendize the removal of the AELUP but was prepared to confer and study the matter further with counsel in a bi-partisan subcommittee.

Commissioner Tom O'Malley of ETRPA joined in to present copies of a May 10, 2005 letter from the California Department of Transportation, Division of Aeronautics regarding change in the City of Irvine's zoning. The ALUC had previously ruled the zoning inconsistent with its El Toro AELUP.  The letter was to Irvine and had been copied to the ALUC but omitted from the commissioners' packets.

The Department of Transportation letter concluded "Since the facility closed in July 1999 and was sold on February 2005, the likelihood that the military will return to use the base is no longer a factor. It is the Department's view that the Orange County ALUC may no longer have the need or authority to advise in the land use planning around the land previously known as MCAS El Toro."

Rather than discuss the core significance of the letter - that the ALUC was out of business at El Toro - commissioners questioned the meaning of the words "sold" and "may" and challenged whether the person who signed for the Division of Aeronautics had the authority to speak for the Division.

Eventually, ALUC Executive Director Joan Golding apologized to the commission for not including the letter in this month's packet of correspondence.

Commissioner Melody Carruth of Laguna Hills urged the commissioners to stop forcing cities to put forth extra ALUC compliance effort on El Toro area projects that are "a complete waste of time." She referred to El Toro airport as a "dead man walking."

Commissioner Harry Dotson, a member of the pro-airport Orange County Regional Airport Authority, retorted in an aside, "It is still walking."

El Toro Info Site report, May 19, 2005 - revised
The news is no news, yet

The Irvine World News posts an editorial cartoon telling Los Angeles to "Back off" on El Toro. Interestingly, the Irvine paper and the Newport Beach Daily Pilot are on the same side on this issue.

But unless we blinked and missed it, none of the Los Angeles newspapers that our team regularly checks, including the Times, have said "boo" on this explosive subject. It has been more than a week since the LA City Council told the Airport Commission to "reinvestigate any and all means, including litigation, to ensure that the offer by the City to lease . . .  El Toro and operate it as a commercial airport is given full consideration by the United States Government."

The Airport Commission met in closed session on Monday to review the case that Los Angeles lawyers have been building over the past months. We do not expect this week's election of a new mayor to deter the pro-El Toro forces in LA from proceeding with litigation.
See article below. They are expected to attack the federal process whereby the former base is being sold. Their goal is to delay the transfer of the property to private hands for non-aviation use while LA pursues changes in state law to allow a takeover of El Toro.

The Orange County Board of Supervisors is silent on the subject, holding its fire waiting for more information about LA's plans.

El Toro Info Site report, May 18, 2005
Hahn defeated for reelection

Los Angeles will have a new mayor. Incumbent James Hahn was unseated by Antonio Villaraigosa in yesterday's runoff election.

Orange County voters had no say in the election but many rooted for Hahn's opponent after the mayor's attempted hostile takeover of the former El Toro base. Hahn, his senior staff and city council supporters sought to convert El Toro to a commercial airport to relieve LAX from anticipated future growth. His pitch to Washington to derail the El Toro sale was made without consultation with and in direct contradiction to the wishes of the Orange County Board of Supervisors and voters.

Villaraigosa's stance on El Toro is less apparent. He has said that he opposes expansion of the Los Angeles airport but has publicly pointed to Palmdale and Ontario - airports owned by LA - as the relief.

During the campaign Villaraigosa derided Hahn's El Toro gambit as "a last-minute, desperate attempt to paper over his record of failed leadership." 

Election of a new mayor will not end attempts to change state law and enable LAX to operate an El Toro airport. The scheme has numerous proponents elsewhere in Los Angeles County. Neither does it rescind the efforts of the LA City Council to block the sale to Lennar. Hahn's defeat does take some wind out of the movement's sail.
El Toro Info Site report, May 17, 2005

No report from yesterday’s Los Angeles meeting

 

The Los Angeles Airport Commission did not disclose what action, if any, it took in closed session regarding initiating litigation over El Toro.

 

Charles Griffin of Newport Beach attended and sought to bring up El Toro in connection with items on the public agenda. There was little reaction from the commission.


In an email to this website's editor, Supervisor Bill Campbell, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, said  he wanted "to gather more information regarding LA's specific plan of action " before agendizing a response to Los Angeles. He said, "Please be assured that . . . Orange County will fight LA's attempts to place an airport at El Toro."


LA Times, May 17, 2005
"Great Park Board Member Quits"

"A former Irvine Co. executive resigned abruptly Friday from the public corporation overseeing redevelopment of the closed El Toro Marine base, saying the Orange County Great Park board suffered from wasteful spending and muddled priorities."

"Richard G. Sim, instrumental in building the Irvine Spectrum business and shopping complex, spent 18 months on the nine-member board and was the only member with experience in large-scale development."

"Sim expressed his concerns in a resignation letter to Irvine Councilman Larry Agran, who chairs the board."

"The board also is preparing to award what could be a million-dollar contract to a public affairs firm without competitive bidding, Sim said in his letter. When he protested to fellow board members, he said, he was told that the contract with Forde & Mollrich of Newport Beach didn't need bids because it was an extension of an earlier contract."

"Sim said in an interview Monday. 'My concern is that we seem to be more interested in PR than we are in planning. When you run a business, you try to do something before you talk about it. We've got our priorities all mixed up.'"

"Sim also questioned a $600,000 contract for choosing a company to design the public areas of the Great Park, including $125,000 for a search coordinator."

Click for the entire article. 

El Toro Info Site report, May 16, 2005
What's LA's basis for a lawsuit?

Some message board posters ask the question. Others answer that there is no basis. We take a more cautious position and assume that a lot of high-priced legal research was conducted on this question over the past year.

The LA Airport Commission meets in closed session today to consider suing the Navy and federal government over the El Toro sale. They may not report their decision until it is implemented. We anticipate a suit claiming that the Navy's conduct of the federal Base Realignment and Closure Act (BRAC) process was flawed. Perhaps the Navy failed to dot every i and cross every t. Los Angeles probably will ask a court to require some part of the process to be done over.

Litigation, even if it loses, is a way to create delay while Los Angeles lobbies the Legislature to rewrite state laws and allow the city to seize control of El Toro. The Orange County Business Journal (July 5-11, 2004) reported that Los Angeles City Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski, whose district includes LAX, wants a law "calling for creation of a regional airport authority - one with 'teeth' that would have the power to compel participation and create incentives for other counties to bear their fair share of the air traffic burden."

Miscikowski co-authored the resolution calling for litigation that the LA City Council approved on May 11 and that led to today's action.

Daily Pilot editorial, May 15, 2005
"Quit meddling, Los Angeles"

"The Los Angeles City Council's 11-0 vote last week to ask the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners to pursue obtaining the former El Toro Marine Air Corps Station as an airport was way out of bounds."

"Don't get us wrong. We think converting El Toro to an airport is a fine idea, but the concept of Los Angeles using any and all means, including litigation, to obtain the land is ludicrous. L.A. has about as much right to demand El Toro for an airport as Newport Beach does to annex Beverly Hills or Bel Air for a new jail or a football stadium."

"El Toro is Orange County's responsibility and no one else's. The county's voters made their choice in 2002 -- opting for the Great Park and more housing -- and, regardless of whether we agree, it's their decision to make."

"Any attempt by Los Angeles to take this property should be rejected outright. The actions of the City Council are insulting and arrogant."

Website Editor: As we've said, even those who are pro-airport oppose an LAX takeover of the former El Toro base.

OC Register, May 15, 2005
“Closed bases often not turned over quickly”

The auction that delivered El Toro base to developer Lennar is an exception.”

The article, originated with the NY Times as More Closings Ahead, Old Bases Still Wait for Hopes to Be Filled”.  

“Even as the recommended base cuts announced by the Pentagon on Friday create new waves of anxiety and lobbying, many city officials across the United States continue to wait on the promises of smooth redevelopment and new civilian uses that came with the previous rounds.”

”Although those base closings were designated a decade or more ago, about 219 square miles of former military property have still not been transferred to local authorities, about 28 percent of the total, the Government Accountability Office reported in January.”

Website Editor: The article cites multiple causes for delay. If the Los Angeles City Council has its way, the delivery of El Toro to private hands also could be stalled. The LA Airport Commission meets tomorrow to consider a lawsuit to stop the federal government’s scheduled July transfer of title to Lennar.


Orange County Business Journal, May 14, 2005, dated May 16
"Sim Calls for Overhaul of Great Park Planning in Letter of Resignation "

“Retired Irvine Company executive Richard ‘Dick’ Sim has resigned from the board of the Great Park Corp., leaving in his wake a withering critique of the process for remaking the former El Toro Marine base.”

“His letter gave no reason for his decision to step down.”

“People close to the nine-member board said Sim was frustrated with several policy decisions. His relations with board Chairman Larry Agran had been strained, they said.”

“Sim called on the board to expand its membership to include representatives of more OC cities, rein in ‘excessive’ spending on public relations and hire an independent chief executive and other managers, rather than rely on city of Irvine staffers.”

"Sim’s letter does not mention Agran. But it clearly challenges the power of the former mayor."

Click for more . . .  


El Toro Info Site report, May 13, 2005 - revised
BRAC closure list released this morning; no SoCal airport candidates named

This morning, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld released his draft list of military bases to be closed. No major Southern California bases were on the list.

The San Diego Regional Airport Authority was not presented with a single major parcel of military land to ease its search for a new airport site. The MCAS Miramar had been rumored as a closure target and was high on the Airport Authority's list. It will remain open. The March JPA airfield, which also was on the Airport Authority's candidate short list - despite its location outside of the county - survived the cut.

There were no closures recommended for Orange County, a result that will produce a sigh of relief for neighbors of Seal Beach Weapons Station and Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Base. They had feared that their communities might become embroiled in a commercial airport battle such as the one some of them supported at El Toro. Seal Beach came out of the process unscathed, with only the inland portion of its detachment in Concord California to be closed. This outcome may frustrate Newport Beach's quest for a second OC commercial airport to relieve John Wayne.

El Segundo avoided the feared loss of the economically vital Los Angeles Air Force base.

Before closures or downsizings can take effect, the Defense Department's proposal must be approved or changed by a federal base closing commission by Sept. 8, and then agreed to by Congress and President Bush, in a process that will run into the fall.


El Toro Info Site report, May 13, 2005
OC residents strongly oppose LA operation of an airport at El Toro.

Yesterday's admittedly unscientific Register County Line Poll asked "Should Los Angeles have any say about the use of the former El Toro Marine base?" The result was:
Yes 34%
No 64%

Airport supporters, using their previously publicized tricks for multiple voting, jumped to an early lead in the poll but could not hold on to what would have been a phony propaganda victory.

A scientific and unbiased poll conducted by Cal State Fullerton confirmed that even airport backers rejected the idea when asked whether they support an airport at El Toro "run by LAX". Airport support slumped to about 25 percent with an overwhelming 75 percent opposed to a Los Angeles operated airport in Orange County. 

El Toro Info Site report, May 12, 2005
LA agendizes airport lawsuit; ETRPA advises them to back off

The Los Angeles Airport Commission agendized the following item for closed session deliberation on Monday:

CONFERENCE WITH LEGAL COUNSEL – ANTICIPATED LITIGATION (GOV. CODE SECTION 54956.9c):

1. LAWA/CITY OF LOS ANGELES VS. THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY AND THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA RELATING TO THE CITY’S OFFER TO LEASE THE FORMER EL TORO MARINE CORPS AIR STATION AND OPERATE IT AS A COMMERCIAL AIRPORT

 

A May 12 letter from the El Toro Reuse Planning Authority cautions:

 

Your council needs to understand that it will face fierce opposition if it pursues this proposal. We will actively and forcefully defend our reuse plan – as mandated by the overwhelming majority of county voters.  It appears that when voting for the resolution the LA City Council may not have been aware of the potential fiscal impact of entering into a long, drawn-out legal battle with the public and private stakeholders in El Toro.

 

Moreover, ETRPA points out that:

 

El Toro is not an appropriate site for a large-scale commercial airport. Furthermore, Orange County already has the second largest airport in the SCAG region. We have recently increased the passenger caps so that John Wayne may accommodate the county’s future growth.


OC Register, May 12, 2005
“Airport vote's effect unclear”


"So has the battle for El Toro come back to life?”

"No one the Register talked to Wednesday was entirely sure what a possible legal fight might mean or whether it could affect plans for the Great Park at the former [El Toro] Marine Corps base."

"’The City Council is asking the question, what options . . . would enable us to operate El Toro as an airport?’ said David Kissinger, airport relations deputy for Los Angeles City Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski.”

"’The important thing is that the Pentagon and the Department of Transportation are both far beyond the point when they could consider any other options," said [Rep. Christopher] Cox, R-Newport Beach. ‘If there were a lawsuit, the only difference is some lawyers would be a lot richer,’" he said.

“Meg Waters, spokeswoman for the El Toro Reuse Planning Authority, said the group's attorney Terry Dixon could not find any legal grounds on which Los Angeles can stop the Great Park development from going forward or even who they would sue.”

"L.A. has done some wacky things," Waters said. "Technically, the base is sold, so do they sue Lennar or the federal government?"

More . . .

Today’s Register County Line Poll asks "Should Los Angeles have any say about the use of the former El Toro Marine base?To respond, call (714) 550-4636 extension 7261 or go to http://www.ocregister.com/ and scroll down the right side column to vote online.


Daily Pilot, May 12, 2005
“Vote may reopen local airport row”

”Just when the issue of a possible commercial airport at the former El Toro Marine air base seemed dead, the Los Angeles City Council is getting involved.”

”The resolution passed by the council stated that the base is an asset to all Californians, not just Orange County residents.”

”The Newport Beach-based Airport Working Group opposes expanding the existing [John Wayne] airport and has supported the El Toro idea. The group’s vice president, Richard Taylor, said he’s glad to hear that Los Angeles is getting involved.”

”’When Los Angeles speaks—they have a lot of clout in Washington. Maybe they’ll sit up and listen,’ Taylor said.”

Website Editor: Do Taylor and the AWG also believe that John Wayne is “an asset to all Californians, not just Orange County residents,” to be run by Los Angeles?

Click for the entire Pilot article.

The Irvine World News coverage of this subject reports: "Congressman Chris Cox called the action, 'good politics in L.A.' with a contentious mayoral race just around the corner. 'There is certainly no immediate threat of litigation or any other course of action,' Cox said."

The Register quotes Supervisor Tom Wilson saying "I see this as another political step in L.A.'s history of politics."

Website Editor: We encourage concerned citizens to contact their supervisors.   Urge that the Board of Supervisors, at their next meeting, officially condemn  Los Angeles interference in a matter settled by the leaders and voters of Orange County and their federally designated Local Redevelopment Authority.


OC Register, May 11, 2005
"L.A. eyes an El Toro airport"
"Los Angeles City Council votes to pursue 'any and all means' to build an international airport at the former O.C. air base."

"Los Angeles city leaders are still determined to see an international airport built at the former El Toro Marine air base, and today they promised a legal fight to make it happen."

"The City Council voted 11-0 to ask the city Board of Airport Commissioners to pursue 'any and all means, including litigation' to force an airport at El Toro."

"It leaves unanswered whether a lawsuit could halt or mire the Great Park development plans already under way at the former base."

LA Times political correspondent Jean Pasco, interviewed on Real Orange this evening called the move "political" and said it would literally "require an act of the Bush administration" to succeed.  More below.


El Toro Info Site Report, May 11, 2005 - updated
Los Angeles renews El Toro quest

This morning, the Los Angeles City Council renewed its quest for a hostile takeover of El Toro to be run as an an adjunct to LAX. The Council unanimously approved a motion by Councilmembers Cardenas and Miscikowski “requesting that the Board of Airport Commissioners reinvestigate any and all means, including litigation, to ensure that the offer by the City to lease the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro and operate it as a commercial airport, is given full consideration by the United States Government.” 

Irvine Mayor Beth Krom called the resolution a disservice to the people of Los Angeles and an insult to the residents of Orange County.  She said, "The federal government has fully considered Los Angeles's ill-conceived plan to lease El Toro for airport use and they have repeatedly rejected it.  Instead, the Navy wisely chose to sell the property at auction to Lennar Communities, a company which is working closely with us to create the Orange County Great Park at El Toro."

It is time for the Orange County Board of Supervisors, as the governing body of this county and the Local Redevelopment Agency for El Toro, to pass a resolution condemning Los Angeles interference in this local land use matter. Chairman Bill Campbell's January letter to the LA Council deserves reinforcement by official and unanimous Board action.

Union-Tribune, May 10, 2005
“Airport authority staff favors expanding Lindbergh's Terminal 2”


”Expanding the airport's newest terminal makes better sense than a proposed new structure east of Terminal 1, according to staff analysts for the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority.”

”Either option would add 10 aircraft gates to San Diego International Airport's inventory of 41. The goal is to meet projected increases in air operations through 2015.”

”The estimated cost of the Terminal 2 expansion and other improvements to the airfield and parking is $536 million.”   More . . .

Website Editor: For reference, John Wayne Airport is planning to add 6 aircraft gates bringing its total to 20.

Los Angeles, proposes to eliminate 10 gates at LAX, shrinking from 163 to 153 and El Segundo politicians are seeking to reduce the number of gates to 142. The goal is to force future passenger demand to other airports.


El Toro Info Site report, May 9, 2005
Blogger promotes new OC airport sites. We don't.

One of the anonymous bloggers at OC Blog has decided that we need another commercial airport in Orange County. We don't agree with him..

On May 8, the OC Blog posted this by its member "Lurk": Lurk writes, "We suggested (on March 28) that the Tustin blimp hangers and its surrounding 1,600 acres might be turned into the airport we couldn't build at El Toro due to fanatically self-absorbed south county NIMBY opposition."  Website Editor: I think he means us.

Lurk continues, "Per this morning's Register, another and possibly even better opportunity arises from the potential closing of the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station as reported in Los Alamitos, Seal Beach bases in line of fire. There's nearly 4,400 acres of available land at this site, nearly the size of the El Toro property. With an over ocean southwesterly take-off pattern similar to John Wayne's, or westerly like LAX, this site could be a winner. Of course, the northern border of the site is the readily accessed 405 and 22 freeways, and north of the freeways is the integratable Joint Forces Training Base (Los Alamitos National Guard) also mentioned in the Register article."

We post this so our readers will know what is being published elsewhere by unidentifiable folks of uncertain credentials. Our El Toro Info Site, and the ETRPA cities never advocated for a second Orange County airport. Instead, the second OC airport concept is enshrined in the City of Newport Beach's Aviation Policy as a means for protecting John Wayne Airport from growth. Los Angeles officials like the idea as a way to avoid growing LAX.

We "fanatical south county NIMBY's" supported Measure F because it required a two-thirds countywide vote to approve building another airport anywhere in OC. Most El Toro opponents also oppose adding extra runways in our built up county when there is relatively empty space in Palmdale and the Inland Empire, where new airports belong. We want transportation planners to think about getting us there when the airport terminals open.

LA Times Business, May 8, 2005 posted May 9
"High-and-Dry Areas Vie for 'Inland Ports'"
"On the Southland's periphery, the scramble is on to create complexes that will help ease the crunch at the L.A.-Long Beach waterfront."

"For its entry into the inland port derby, Victorville has transformed the former George Air Force Base into the Southern California Logistics Airport and plans to build rail spurs from nearby Burlington Northern Santa Fe tracks. Local officials tout the area's ample warehouse space, labor force and airport power plant."

"In some respects, it is the most versatile of the new inland areas seeking to capitalize on the boom in international trade. The airport has North America's second-longest runway, and it can accommodate even the largest airliners."

"Shippers 'won't have any nearby residential areas complaining about congestion and noise, and we have a facility we are customizing for air, rail and truck transport,' Victorville City Councilman Terry Caldwell said."

Click for the entire article. . .

LA Times, May 8, 2005 - updated
"Allied City, Base Fear Ax"

"The bond between Los Alamitos and its Joint Forces Training Base transcends business. But it could all end if the Pentagon shuts the facility." "[The Los Al base] is one of dozens of military bases in California and around the country that may end up on a Pentagon list of recommended closures on May 16."

"That is enough to give pause to residents and city officials, who earlier this year lobbied for the facility before a California committee studying the bases. Base boosters say that, over the years, it has become woven into their day-to-day lives."

"On any given day, the base is home to 850 personnel. On some weekends, the base swells with 3,500 military reservists and National Guard members."

"It is the only major airfield in Southern California, Army Col. Greg Peck, Los Alamitos base commander said, with the ability to store hundreds of military aircraft with two runways - the shortest is longer than John Wayne Airport's - and more than 1 million square feet of parking space."

"'We can land and park any military or civilian aircraft with the exception of the B1 bomber,' he said." Click for the entire article.

Website Editor: Closing Los Alamitos - or the nearby Seal Beach Weapons Station - likely would rekindle the debate over whether Orange County needs a second commercial airport, led by those hoping to divert future passenger growth from John Wayne airport and LAX.

Today's OC Register  reports "The talk running through town is that a regional airport or prison could replace the 1,400-acre Los Alamitos base, but officials say those options are virtually impossible because of air-traffic patterns and dense urban development around the base." 

LA Times, May 7, 2005
"City Wants Pentagon to Close Naval Station"
"Other communities hope to retain military bases, but Concord sees its 12,800-acre site as a place to build houses, stores, schools, parks."

"As the Pentagon prepares a list of military bases it wants to close, communities throughout California are pleading to have their bases spared. Not Concord."

"Officials in this middle-class suburb 30 miles northeast of San Francisco have asked the Pentagon to close the 12,800-acre Concord Naval Weapons Station so it can be turned over for private development."

"Officials view the site, valued at $1 billion, as one of the last largely undeveloped stretches in the San Francisco Bay Area. City planners have tentative proposals for 13,500 homes, a shopping center, a light-industrial park, libraries, schools and thousands of acres of grassy parkland."  More . . .

Website Editor: It sounds like a reuse to rival Irvine's plan for El Toro.


The Concord station operates as a detachment of the Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach. With other West Coast weapons facilities they offer "complementary capabilities which, when added together, provide America's armed forces with superior weapons storage, loading and maintenance services."

Gazettes.com, May 6, 2005
Long Beach “Airport EIR Study Gets Fast Track”

”An Environmental Impact Report of proposed improvements at Long Beach Airport could be speeded up by as much as five months, but still will take until next March to get to the Planning Commission.”

”City Manager Jerry Miller told the council Tuesday that the EIR process essentially had to start from the beginning after a Feb. 8 council vote to limit the scope of the study to a maximum of 102,000 square feet, the smallest of three alternatives recommended by the Airport Advisory Commission.”

”The call for an accelerated study was prompted by formation of a group called the Long Beach Alliance. That group unveiled its campaign last week with the slogan ‘Airport Improvement, Not Expansion. No more flights.’

“JetBlue’s public and government relations manager, said last week that JetBlue is helping to finance the alliance.”

”Debate about the airport improvements has polarized the city since they were first proposed in 2002. A residents’ group called LBHUSH2 has contended that an enlarged terminal would invite more flights.”

See the article and one that follows it about Jet Blue’s position in the airport debate. 


El Toro Info Site report, May 5, 2005
Gordon’s airport noise bill amended; will apply only to LAX

AB 556 is one of three airport bills being followed by this website. Its author, Assemblyman Mike Gordon of El Segundo drafted the bill to impose legislative restrictions, including penalties, on airport noise. On May 4, the bill was watered down in response to objections, and now applies only to LAX.

We still have concerns that political restrictions on the utilization of the region’s principal airport are pushing passengers, willing or not, to other airports. This week, an article on the world’s top 10 airports noted that “having to spend a few hours cooling your heels at Los Angeles airport is an experience to be avoided at all costs . . . The good news for New Zealand travelers is that San Francisco . . . an alternative to Los Angeles [is rated as one of] the three best airports in North America.”


El Toro Info Site report, May 5, 2005
Local airports report first quarter traffic

20.6 million passengers used the region’s six airports in January-March 2005, an increase of 5.1 percent over the quarter ending March 2004.

The percentage increase by airport is as follows:

John Wayne

5.1

Long Beach

5.8

Ontario

3.8

Palm Springs

4.9

Bob Hope

7.7

LAX (domestic)

3.9

LAX (international)

8.0

Total

5.1


El Toro Info Site report, May 4, 2005
Lake Forest, San Diego oppose regional airport bills

On April 26, the Lake Forest City Council went on record as opposing two regional airport authority bills in the California legislature. The council filed Notices of Opposition to both AB 1197 and SB 32.

The AB 1197 letter notes that the bill “proposes a thirteen-member Commission. However, the composition of the Commission seems arbitrary, relegating some key stakeholders to non-voting member status while omitting others altogether . . . Ontario and Los Angeles are . . . the only two city representatives.” The bill is described as “heavily representing Los Angeles interests.”

An April 15 letter from the San Diego County Airport Authority opposed AB 556, calling it “a one-size-fits-all” regulation that would “divert critical resources and money”. “This bill would prohibit Caltrans [which oversees airport noise rules as part of the Department of Transportation] from modifying or updating the noise variance process without an act of the Legislature.”


LA Times, May 3, 2005
“Candidates Disagree on Future of L.A. Airport”
”Hahn pushed the City Council to OK his plan to modernize LAX. Villaraigosa voted against it but has not detailed his own vision.” 

With the election two weeks away, “The two candidates for Los Angeles mayor, who agree broadly on many issues, disagree strenuously about one: how to fix the city's aging and congested airport.”

”Mayor James K. Hahn pushed the City Council to approve his $11-billion modernization plan for Los Angeles International Airport in December.”

”His opponent, Antonio Villaraigosa, was one of three council members to vote against the controversial plan, although he never has detailed his own vision of what to do with the 76-year-old airport . . . The councilman's reticence to release his own LAX plan, however, has left some airport-area residents wary of what he would do at the airport if he won the May 17 runoff.”

”Opposition to the mayor's plan remains intense in airport-area communities, including Westchester and Playa del Rey, and many residents say Villaraigosa's vote against it is enough to win their support. The councilman has landed endorsements from influential politicians representing the airport area.”

Congresswoman Maxine Waters and Assemblyman Mike Gordon (D-El Segundo), who also recently endorsed Villaraigosa, don't believe Hahn's proposal would hold LAX to 78 million annual passengers.

Website Editor: Orange County legislators are watching for amendments to Gordon’s Assembly Bill 1197.  El Toro could be added to the bill's list of airport sites controlled by a proposed state-mandated and Los Angeles dominated regional airport authority. Such a change would win broad support from Los Angeles politicians.

Click for the entire Times report. . .


OC Great Park Corp PR newswire, May 2, 2005
"Six Distinguished Professionals to Serve on Orange County Great Park Design Jury Panel "

"The Orange County Great Park Corporation named a jury design panel today of six respected academics, architects and professionals. The jury will review the qualifications of the landscape architecture firms who are competing to design the Great Park and recommend six finalists to the Orange County Great Park Corporation board of directors. These finalists will have the opportunity to develop a Great Park Conceptual Design Master Plan."

New York Times, May 1, 2005 posted May 2
"Airports less than eager to make room for big new Airbus"
"The European manufacturer is faced with the challenge of convincing airports to reinforce runways and convert arrival gates to accommodate the huge airliner"

"Few people predict that major airports will not be ready for the A380. But there may be some close calls. Los Angeles International wants to move one of its four runways several feet to the south to create a center taxiway wide enough to be used by A380s after they land. "

"But the plans have been bogged down in litigation, and Los Angeles World Airports, the authority that runs the airport, is not sure it will finish construction before the first flight is expected there, in November next year. It says it has a backup plan: obtaining Federal Aviation Administration approval for the plane to land on one of the other runways."

"The airport has had to compromise in other ways. Because space is at such a premium, it is converting only two gates at the Tom Bradley International Terminal to serve A380s. To compensate, it is setting up two other gates on the airfield away from the terminal."

"Virgin Atlantic Airways, one of the first buyers of the A380, has cited the restrictions in Los Angeles as one of the reasons it pushed back delivery of its six planes until early 2008."

Click for more of the article. . . 


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