NEWS - July 2002
Today's Headlines
- click on date for full story
El Toro Info Site report, July 31, 2002 -FLASH
Supervisor Smith slips something in at the last
moment
The Press-Enterprise, July 31, 2002
"Riverside County pulls out"
"Supervisors withdraw from Southern California Regional Airport
Authority."
Daily Pilot, July 31, 2002
"Airplane leaving JWA makes emergency landing"
El Toro Info Site report, July 30, 2002
Three former So. Cal region military bases to receive
conversion funds.
Orange County Business Journal editorial, July 30,
2002
Plans for the Great Park include 45 holes of golf.
That buys my vote!
LA Times, July 29, 2002
"'Great Park' Comes With a Great Price Tag"
"Irvine will need hundreds of millions to add 'jewelry' to lawn.
Critics say cost will force massive development."
El Toro Info Site report, July 27, 2002
JWA passenger traffic recovering part of loss
Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, July 26, 2002
Inland leaders thrash SCAG
El Toro Info Site Report, July 25, 2002
Airport Working Group brings sour grapes to picnic
LA Times, July 25, 2002
"How Irvine Got Navy on Board for El Toro Deal"
"By negotiating to sell the former base in large parcels, the
city offered the military a quick out. Removing contamination could slash
sale profits."
El Toro Info Site Report, July 24, 2002
Measure W lawsuit hearing set for September
LA Times, July 24, 2002
4,000 Acres Set Aside for El Toro Park
Land use: Developers will bid on the other 15% of the base for
retail space, sites for 3,400 homes. The Irvine Co. won't be among them.
El Toro Info Site Report, July 23, 2002 - updating
It will be a Great Park
El Toro Info Site report, July 23, 2002 - revised
Irvine-Navy plan for El Toro will be released today
LA Times, July 22, 2002
"The Blueprint for El Toro: How Great a Great Park?"
Chicago Daily Herald, July 20, 2002
"O'Hare expansion may hit Hispanics the hardest"
El Toro Info Site report, July 19, 2002
The evolving non-aviation plan
OC Register, July 18, 2002
"Bidding to begin for Tustin base"
El Toro Info Site Report, July 17, 2002
What's up with O'Hare expansion?
Business Wire, July 16, posted July 17, 2002
"Board of Airport Commissioners Authorizes Contract
Negotiations to Develop Airport Master Plan for Palmdale Regional Airport"
LA Times, July 17, 2002
"Campaign Mailers Now Subject to Gift Limits"
OC Register, July 16, 2002
Coad plan would limit campaign spending
El Toro Info Site Report, July 15, 2002
Smith proposes El Toro advocate for the Airport
Commission
Daily Bulletin, July 15, 2002
"ONT has big plans for cargo facility"
Associated Press, July 12, 2002
"Protest sparks Mexico hostage taking"
"Anti-airport activists seize, threaten lives of officials"
Daily Pilot, July 12, 2002
"Newport Beach to look at El Toro spending"
El Toro Info Site report, July 11, 2002
Navy letter is essential reading
OC Register, July 11, 2002
"El Toro auction plans announced"
El Toro Info Site report, July 10, 2002
Southern California Regional Airport Authority
update
OC Register, July 10, 2002
"Environmentalists sue to stop Irvine project"
LB Press Telegram editorial, July 8, 2002
LAX in a vacuum
El Toro Info Site report, July 7, 2002
What's happening with El Toro?
CNN.com July 5, 2002 - updated
Los Angeles airport shooting kills 3
El Toro
Info Site report, July 4, 2002
Let's celebrate. Revisit this PowerPoint display
of Millennium fireworks.
LA Times, July 3, 2002
"Hahn Plan Shifts LAX Burden to Other Cities "
"Mayor lacks the power to order changes, however, and region's
airports face limits."
El Toro Info Site report, July 3, 2002
Nakano bill rescheduled for August
El Toro Info Site report, July 2, 2002
The evolving non-aviation reuse plan
LA Times, July 2, 2002
"$9.6-Billion Make-Over for LAX?"
"Mayor's plan seeks to ease congestion and boost security--but
not increase capacity."
Long Beach Press Telegram, July 1, 2002
"More flights, more noise"
The following mysterious late addition appears on the Board of Supervisors agenda for next Tuesday, August 6, 2002:
56. Supervisor Smith - Consider placement of the "El Toro Reuse Ordinance" before Orange County voters on November 5, 2002 general electionThere are no details attached to the agenda item regarding the ordinance. Clearly, someone has been working on this in secret.
Smith's concept appears to call for a vote in November on whether any future El Toro development should be subject to a public vote. Just what we need is two more El Toro elections!
Friday afternoon is the last opportunity for providing the AIT (Agenda Item Transmittal). Next week is also believed to be the last opportunity to place a measure on the November ballot.
Supervisor Tom Wilson previously told the Board that he would be out-of-town for the meeting.
E-mail Supervisor Smith
objecting to another ballot campaign on El Toro.
Post comments to the Board on their website by noon Friday at http://www.oc.ca.gov/bos/OpinionOnLine.asp
"[Riverside] Supervisors voted unanimously on Tuesday to sever the county's relationship with the Southern California Regional Airport Authority. The authority has been debating ways to handle an anticipated influx of passengers and air cargo traffic from the coast to the Inland area."
"Riverside County's representative on the [SCRAA] board, Supervisor Jim Venable, has grown impatient in recent months with the authority."
"Venable had wanted the authority to pressure a larger regional planning group, the Southern California Association of Governments, or SCAG, to distribute future funds according to a formula that would benefit the Inland area. But the issue was twice delayed, angering Venable and Riverside County."
Website Editor: The pullout comes at a crucial time when SCRAA is trying to obtain funds from the FAA, and Assemblyman George Nakano's bill which originally gave SCRAA increased regional powers is winding its way through the state legislature with the SCRAA sections deleted.
Supervisor Charles Smith is Orange County's represntative to SCRAA and has been a major force in reviving the long-dormant group. Most of it's staff, including Executive Director Peggy Ducey, are alumni of the Newport Beach pro-El Toro camp.
"An early morning flight out of John Wayne Airport was forced to make an emergency stop at Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday after one of the plane's two engines failed.
"Delta Flight 138 to Atlanta was declared to be in a state of emergency after the pilot reported that one of the Boeing 757's engines had failed shortly after takeoff at 8:45 a.m. The plane landed safely at LAX shortly after 9 a.m. None of the 167 passengers was injured."
"John Wayne traffic was unaffected by the incident, airport spokeswoman Ann McCarley said."
Website editor: The failure was another reminder of the greater safety of takeoffs over the ocean rather than into the mountaineous terrain in the flight paths from El Toro.
The Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today selected five additional airports to participate in the Military Airport Program (MAP). Included in the new list is San Bernardino International Airport, San Bernardino.
The MAP, which is funded through the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP), provides financial assistance to the civilian sponsor of military airfields being converted to, or that have been converted to, civilian or joint-use airfields. The program increases airport system capacity by funding the development of civilian airfields in or near major metropolitan areas at relatively low costs.
Already on the list of MAP participants are March Inland Port, Riverside, CA and Southern California Logistics Airport, Victorville, CA.
Pro-airport Editor Rick Reiff says, "Sounds ‘Great’" and the plan seems, "at first blush, to be a huge winner for Orange County."
"The plan for developing the former El Toro Marine base that was put forward last week is conceptually brilliant—simply put, private development (residential and commercial) on 700 acres will be leveraged to pay for a world-class park and other public uses on the remaining 3,000 acres [plus] 1,000 acres of wildlife refuge already set aside on the base."
"But the plan is so far devoid of detail. Those details include everything from how much a buyer will have to spend to ready land for development to how much in public-benefit fees will be extracted from the developers. Those details will determine whether the Navy gets what it wants for the land, whatever that amount might be, and whether the development can pay, as intended, for the envisioned public uses. Rough ball estimates of what the Navy might fetch range from $300 million to more than a billion, but they’re all guesses right now. And the Navy says the toxic mess will be cleaned up, whatever that might cost."
"A key point that has already emerged is that the Navy won’t challenge Irvine’s intent to implement the spirit of the county-passed Measure W, which by shielding more than 80% of the base from private development dramatically reduces its sales value. The Navy is defining its objective of 'an orderly sale to produce the highest value for the taxpayers' within the limitations imposed by Measure W."
"And for those still litigating for an airport, Navy assistant secretary H.T. Johnson sent the message that the Navy considers the airport plan to be deader than a spent cartridge."
"Airport advocates. Face it, folks, we’re toast."
"Years of neglect have turned the El Toro Marine base into a bunch of shabby buildings atop an ocean of cracked paving, weeds and dead grass. But Irvine officials look at this blight and see a lush park with thousands of trees, rolling meadows and a vibrant museum district--a vision they promise to fulfill without raising taxes a dime."
"Some crafty maneuvering will allow the city to at least get started. A recycler will tear out the base's runways for free so it can then crush the concrete and sell it. Flexible government bond financing will allow the city to start putting in sewers and building roads."
"But creating the Great Park voters approved in March as an alternative to a commercial airport is going to require major private donations."
"'There will be a lot of fund-raising to add what we call 'jewelry' to the park,' said City Manager Allison Hart. The jewelry could be anything from gardens, ponds and stone walkways to gymnasiums and other community recreation buildings."
"'The only part of this plan that will become a reality is the massive development,' contends the Airport Working Group of Orange County, a coalition that has lobbied for an airport."
"Yet those involved in designing urban parks elsewhere say there's nothing outlandish about the city's plan."
"'There is no reason they cannot pay for this park completely with private money,' said Dan Biederman, who runs the management company for Bryant Park in New York City. 'Irvine offers a climate that is favorable to free enterprise and is full of a lot of innovative people and businesses.'"
"Irvine officials are studying all of this, as well as how to create a conservancy trust fund modeled after the one for New York's Central Park. That public-private partnership has generated $250 million for park programs, beautification and maintenance since 1998."
Click here for the entire article in the Early Bird message board thread.
While LAX continues to suffer, passenger traffic at JWA is recovering some of its losses. For the first six months of 2002, LAX served about 27 million passengers down from 33 million in the prior year. John Wayne traffic is up by 2.3 percent in the same period as passengers seem to choose the less crowded airport.
For the past 12 months, John Wayne served 7.4 million passengers. It served 7.3 million travellers in calendar year 1996and has shown little growth since. Its capacity is limited by an agreement to 8.4 million but the Board of Supervisors and Newport Beach groups have voted to raise that figure to 9.8 million.
"They urge withdrawal from regional planning agency for favoring coastal communities "
"Riverside and San Bernardino counties should leave the government agency responsible for housing and transportation planning in Southern California, an Inland Empire business group said this week."
"The Inland Empire Economic Partnership believes decisions made by the Southern California Association of Governments affecting land development and transportation have benefited coastal counties at the expense of the Inland Empire's economic prosperity and quality of life."
'''We're sick and tired of the Inland Empire being dumped on by the so-called regional organizations that don't have a clue as to what's going on out here,' IEEP Chairman George Reyes said Thursday. ''The IEEP wants to be a catalyst for cities out here to perhaps form their own such organization.'''
"In addition to Riverside and San Bernardino counties, SCAG is lawfully responsible for managing regional growth in Imperial, Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties."
"Of particular concern to the IEEP are SCAG decisions affecting airport expansion, where low to moderate housing is built and the growth of Southern California's transportation infrastructure."
'''All of the decisions they made ensured that Los Angeles International Airport stayed at the center of passenger and cargo traffic in Southern California,' [IEEE CEO Teri] Ooms said. This was done despite the fact that LAX is at capacity and the Inland Empire has a handful of airports that are ready for expansion, she added."
Website Editor: The LA-dominated SCAG is also criticized in Orange County for supporting an airport at El Toro. SCAG hopes for a so-called "fair share" allocation of airport capacity in its region and to cap LAX. Assemblyman George Nakano is pushing a bill in Sacramento to put the "fair share" concept into law. An examination of the allocation of airport capacity in the San Francisco Bay Area shows how far SCAG and Nakano are out-of-touch with reality.
“The latest version of the Great Park is no picnic,” declared Airport Working Group Vice President Richard F. Taylor of Newport Beach, yesterday.
The AWG reports that, "Our test is simple – can your family have a picnic on the sub-parcels outlined in Irvine's plans? Our findings show that it might be possible to have a family picnic on 671 acres at the 'Great Park'”
Website editor: Personally, I've never needed that much space to spread a blanket. A hundred square feet would be very roomy and that way, a quarter of a million families could all picnic at once. If we needed more space we could move over to the university campus, the grass in front of the museums, in the bleachers at a soccer game, or even on a bench at the transit station while waiting for an express bus to the airport.
"Just three months ago, Irvine's vision of building a 'Great Park in the heart of Orange County at the closed El Toro Marine base seemed doomed. The Navy had announced that it would auction off the 4,738-acre parcel, stunning city officials who had expected that the land would be given to them to create the park."
"But on Tuesday, Navy and city officials came out with a plan that seemed to give Irvine everything it had hoped for, with more than 80% of the base dedicated to parkland."
"Irvine relied on negotiating skills developed over decades of dealing with another large land owner: the Irvine Co. Also of help was the Navy's eagerness to dispose of the site as soon as possible, to avoid the base-reuse battles that have dragged on for years elsewhere. El Toro had already become a problem for the military as county politicians argued for a decade over whether to build an airport there."
"'We spent a lot of time explaining to them how they could enhance the value of their property, and putting candid information on the table about the pulse of the local community.' said Brian Myers, a consultant to Irvine."
"The city ultimately made the Navy an offer it couldn't refuse: It would zone lucrative building rights on 738 acres of the base, where developers would be able to build 3,400 homes and 2.9 million square feet of retail space immediately. There would be no drawn-out approval process, no project-by-project environmental impact reports and no decade-long lawsuits."
"The Navy could sell the parcels with development rights built in and wash its hand of the process altogether. It was the quick end the Navy was looking for."
"Some experts predict that the land sale could bring in as little as a few hundred million dollars, since developers will be buying the property knowing they will have to fund not only the park land, but all the infrastructure and maintenance costs associated with the park."
"And if the environmental problems are as immense as some fear, the Navy's return will be cut significantly. Navy officials say that the base is 87% clean and that the remaining toxic substances can be removed at minimal expense in the next few years."
Attorney Fredric Woocher, representing OCRAA and Newport Beach groups, has asked the Superior Court in Los Angeles County to decide the Measure W case based solely on issues of law contained in the pleadings submitted in the case, rather than on full testimony. A hearing on his motion to speed up the case is set for September 18th.
Woocher argues two principal points:
1. Measure W is beyond the power of the local electorate to enact by initiative because it unlawfully intrudes upon and interferes with the authority for planning the reuse of MCAS El Toro that has been exclusively delegated to the Board of Supervisors, and
2. Measure W is an unlawfully deceptive and deceitful initiative, containing false and misleading representations concerning the "contents, purport or effect" of the measure in violation of state election laws. Measure W not only falsely promises to preserve El Toro as "open space" and to create a vast "Central Park" on that property, but it falsely represents that this great new park can and will be created "at no cost to Orange County taxpayers."
Attorneys for the initiative expect to win on both points. Woocher sites California Assembly Bill AB 37 as giving sole responsibility to the Board of Supervisors but the California bill also states that "It is not the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section to preempt local planning."
Yesterday's presentation of the Great Park plan seems to indicate that the second point is way off base.
"Irvine and the federal government unveiled a plan Tuesday that calls for developers to create one of the country's largest urban parks at the mothballed El Toro Marine base in exchange for the right to build there."
"The plan would set aside 4,000 acres--about 85% of the available land at the base--for sports fields, museums, wildlife corridors and other public uses, in keeping with the city's vision for a 'Great Park.' . . . building will be restricted to clusters on the remaining 738 acres of the base. Permits will be granted for 3,400 homes and 2.9 million square feet of retail space."
"The developers will have to turn over the rest of the land to the park as a condition of sale. They will also be required to fund the development and maintenance of the park. Under the plan, the Navy will pay to clean up any remaining hazardous waste from military operations."
"Even as pro-airport advocates continue to press their case in lawsuits, Navy officials said their decision is final and that they will move forward with the plan even if the March vote is overturned in court." Website Editor: At the 1:00 PM briefing, Secretary Johnson seemed less sure about how they would handle a negative court ruling. The sale process will be well along before the case is decided.
"The proposed park would be four times the size of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Irvine officials said it would be developed over 10 years, but parts could be open to the public by mid-2005."
"Michael Pinto, president of the Laguna Canyon Foundation [said] he and other conservationists were delighted by the setting aside of 1,200 acres to complete a 'sea to sage' wildlife corridor stretching from Crystal Cove State Park to Cleveland National Forest."
"As much as half the residential development would be mixed among shops and offices in a proposed transit village [TOD on the map] , which would include a new Metrolink station near the Irvine Spectrum."
"The park will also include 769 acres of meadows, a 164-acre sports park, a 151-acre 'exposition area' that could be used by cultural institutions to build museums or libraries, 307 acres of agricultural land, and 582 acres of public golf courses, a cemetery and veteran's memorial, and a 'commercial recreation' district. The plan also calls for setting aside 276 acres for university purposes, land where Cal State Fullerton hopes to build a satellite campus."
"One development firm that is not interested--to the surprise of many--is the Irvine Co.. . . company officials say they will sit the auction out."
Not everyone was happy. The OC Register reported this gem: "Asked how much of a park county residents will eventually see at El Toro, pro-airport leader Barbara Lichman answered in a staccato burst of scorn: 'Zip! Zilch! Nada! Nothing!'"
The Register County Line Poll asks:El Toro Info Site Report, July 23, 2002 - updating
Has Irvine broken the promise of a Great Park by adding 3,400 homes?To respond, call 714-550-4636 Ext. 7261 (6:00 AM to 6:30 PM)
or click on http://www.ocregister.com (Question not updated as of 7:40 AM)
El Toro - At a news conference this afternoon, the City of Irvine publicized details of the non-aviation plan that was developed in cooperation with the Department of the Navy. The joint planning had as a goal the creation of market value for the Navy, which intends to sell the property next year following its annexation by Irvine. The plan released today contained most of the land uses features of Measure W.
H. T. Johnson, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment was in attendance with several Navy and GSA officials and praised the teamwork with Irvine and ETRPA.
The County seemed irrelevant. The only mention of the Board of Supervisors came from Tom Wilson who offered "Congratulations from the Board of Supervisors . . . at least two of us."
The Navy stated that it is "breaking even" since taking over the property. The county had projected red ink from non-aviation uses.
The plan includes 4,000 acres (84% of the land) designated for park use, open space, recreational and educational uses, riparian corridors, a museum and exposition area, sports fields, golf courses, a university campus, permanent agriculture, a nature preserve and a cemetery and veterans' memorial. A central area will consist of 764 acres of park meadows and nature corridors along waterways.
Mayor Larry Agran noted that the park would exceed the combined size of New York's Central Park, San Francisco's Golden Gate and San Diego's Balboa Park.
Residential development will be limited to 1,400 units near the golf course, replacing the existing units in that part of the base, 800 senior housing units in place of Marine housing north or Irvine Blvd., and a 1,500-unit village clustered near retail, office and transportation in the southeast "panhandle". A portion of the housing will be designated "affordable." Because barracks will be gone, the actual population of persons living on the property may actually be less than during the military use.
The Airport Working Group threatens that there "would be 33,867 homes" added. Pro-airport activist Shirley Conger wrote, in a letter published in the Register this morning, that there would be "wall to wall" houses. The plan released today shows those claims to be outrageously deceptive.
The number of automobile trips contemplated from the unincorporated portion of the property will be within 10 percent of the number expected under Measure W and half that of an airport.
The buildout and maintenance of the project will be done by private developers and with private financing. The pro-airport slogan of a "Great Tax for Great Pork" should be totally debunked after today.
Click here for our collection of maps of the reuse plan, updated to include today's.
Mayor Agran and City Manager Allison Hart expect "all key elements" of the project to be built in 10 years. Fifty soccer fields should be available in an early phase, in around 3 years. The developers will build the public uses and contribute to a maintenance foundation in return for being allowed to build more than would otherwise have been permitted under Measure W.
Secretary Johnson said that the lawsuits brought by pro-airport groups would not stop them. However, he said, an unfavorable ruling from a judge could affect what they do.
The property will be marketed for four months with brochures, tours, and help from Irvine. There will be four main parcels. The Irvine Auto Park and a 200 acre agricultural site in the northwest corner of the property may be broken off as two more.The bidding would take an additional month or two. We will follow it online.
For additional information visit the City of Irvine' website.
The absence of advance information about tbe El Toro plan is attributed to the Navy's desire to avoid working out the complex process in a public arena. That changes this afternoon when the plan is unveiled, first at a press briefing at the base at 1:00 PM and then at an open meeting of the Irvine City Council at 5:00 PM. The presentation will be posted on this website.
440 acres of the base are incorporated into the City of Irvine and not covered by Measure W. Following annexation of the remainder by the city, county ordinance Measure W will no longer apply.
This currently unincorporated land will be developed consistent with
the goals of Measure W. Some changes were required to generate more property
value for the Navy which owns the land.
"The fate of the closed El Toro Marine Corps Air Station should become clearer Tuesday as officials with the Navy and Irvine gather at the base to unveil plans for auctioning the land for development. The joint news conference also should reveal how far the city has retreated from its promises of a vast public park at El Toro."
"Irvine took over planning for the base in April, but the city isn't bound by the March vote . . . Since April, the city has shared little about what might happen at the 4,700-acre base located in the county's core. About 1,000 acres will stay in federal hands as a wildlife sanctuary."
"Discussions have been held behind closed doors. Representatives from a coalition of South County cities that fought the airport weren't invited, nor were county officials--even though the base remains under county control."
"Supervisor Tom Wilson . . . said he asked for a preview of Irvine's plan but got nothing. 'It's disappointing they don't want to share with anyone,' Wilson said. 'It's not for lack of asking. We'll have to give them the benefit of the doubt that they're truly working in the spirit of Measure W.'"
"Several other airport opponents shared the same worry but declined to publicly criticize Irvine, noting that while a large urban park may never be built, neither will the airport."
"Christine Diemer Iger, former executive director of the Orange County chapter of the Building Industry Assn. said, 'There's a buzz in the industry [about El Toro], and it's not about keeping it as open space . . . I think most developers and builders realize that there will have to be some sort of open space. That's what happens in the entitlement process: You work with the city so there's quality of life.'"
Website Editor: We will be posting details of the Irvine-Navy plan tomorrow afternoon. Click here for maps of the evolving non-aviation concepts.
Click here to post reactions to the Times article and what is characterized as the joint demise of the airport and the Great Park.
"Of the 533 homes in Bensenville {in the path of a proposed new O'Hare runway] that would be demolished, about 200 are townhouses, the vast majority of which are home to Mexican-American families."
"With a vote expected in Congress next week on O'Hare expansion, Hispanic residents are trying to alert political leaders to the damage that would be done to their community."
"Joel Campuzano, head of the DuPage chapter of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly. . . and others have been calling and writing their congressmen to oppose O'Hare expansion, but have gotten little feedback, other than from Republican U.S. Rep. Henry Hyde of Bensenville, who's been leading the fight against new runways."
Website Editor: Industry and government leaders have largely coalesced behind a plan to nearly double the capacity of O'Hare. There is relatively little attention in Chicago to finding a "regional solution" (though some want to add a new airport in rural Peotone), requiring each county to do its "fair share", and litigating for "environmental justice". All of these concepts are cited by those who hope to block expansion of LAX as the southland's major airport.
Click here for a recent
letter from local congressional reps regarding LAX.
El Toro Info Site report, July
19, 2002
The evolving non-aviation plan
We have collected several maps created during the evolving non-aviation planning for El Toro. Click here for the original Millenium Plan, 2001 Great Park concept map from the City of Irvine, a map of the land uses allowed under Measure W, and a proposed map developed in response to the Navy's announcement that the land would be sold.
Next Tuesday, a joint press conference hosted by the City of Irvine and the Department of the Navy at El Toro will unveil more details of how the land will be parceled for sale. We will update this page of maps and provide complete coverage of the briefing.
"Developers will compete in an online auction beginning today for three parcels of prime real estate at the vacant 1,600-acre Tustin Marine Corps Air Station."
"The 235 acres along Harvard and Edinger avenues contain homes abandoned by the military after the Tustin base closed in July 1999. The areas to be auctioned are Moffett Meadows, Marble Mountain and Tustin Villas. The suggested opening bids are $40 million, $20 million and $40 million, respectively."
"The Tustin base land is listed as one of six 'Hot Sales' properties on the Web site for General Service Administration Property Disposal, the agency monitoring the auction for the U.S. Navy."
"At the nearby El Toro Marine base, the Navy will auction off about 3,700 acres at an undetermined date, a Navy official said."
Website editor: Almost 1,000 acres at El Toro will be retained as a nature preserve.
Tustin opening bids were set at over $400,000 per acre. If this pricing were to apply to the nearby El Toro property the starting auction price would be around $1.5 billion.
In what has been called "a stunning defeat", the House of Representatives late Monday failed to approve the $6-billion expansion of O'Hare International Airport after Illinois lawmakers voiced their deep divisions over the bill's content and constitutionality. The 247-143 tally fell 13 votes short of the two-thirds majority required for passage.
Reps. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) and Jesse Jackson Jr. (D-Ill.), political opposites but both ardent foes of airport expansion, led the charge against the legislation with passionate pleas to their colleagues, attacking the measure as an intrusion into a local controversy that challenged the constitutional prerogatives of state governments.
Asked to explain how the measure went from being considered a sure thing to an upset, Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Wood Dale, said, 'Clean living, nutritious food, a lot of work and whispering in ears.'
The temporary defeat also follows a ruling from a DuPage County judge last week blocking the city of Chicago from buying land around the airport for the expansion project.
Proponents emphasized that the bill represents a local agreement between Republican Gov. George Ryan and Richard M. Daley, Chicago's Democratic mayor. The legislation is designed to codify the agreement between Daley and Ryan for reconfiguring runways at O'Hare and nearly doubling the capacity of the airport to 1.6 million flights per year.
It stands in stark contrast to Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn's proposal to cap LAX.
The agreement also calls for western road access to O'Hare, development of a third regional airport in rural Peotone and an abandonment of plans to shut down Meigs Field on Chicago's lakefront. Priority funding for the south suburban Peotone airport was dropped from the congressional bill in order to gain support.
The federal legislation would prevent future governors from using powers under state law to interfere with any airport development 'directly related' to the plans included in the O'Hare agreement.
"I firmly believe that this bill will do more to end the aviation gridlock that plagues the American flying public than any other measure this Congress could pass," the bill's sponsor Rep. Bill Lipinski (D - Ill.) said.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert will help the bill along, possible to another vote in a week. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) meantime pledged to bring the O'Hare legislation to a senate vote this year.
"The Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners today took a step toward development of Palmdale Regional Airport (PMD) as a commercial airport to help meet the passenger and cargo needs of Southern California in the 21st Century."
"The board authorized Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) staff to negotiate a contract with URS Corp. of Los Angeles for services to develop an airport master plan and any required supporting environmental impact statement/report. The document will cover a 25-year planning horizon."
"The master plan will focus on defining a future role for PMD in the regional context and developing a long-term strategy for . . . development of a new airport on LAWA owned property comprising 17,750 acres."
"An amendment to the county's campaign reform ordinance approved Tuesday [3-0 by the Board of Supervisors] extends its $1,000 contribution limit to cover slate mailers produced or distributed with the cooperation of a candidate's campaign. The candidate now will have to pay his or her share of the mailer's costs, which typically far exceed the $1,000 limit."
"Coad was the subject of more than a dozen critical mailers from a slate-mailer organization run by opponents of a proposed airport at the closed El Toro Marine base. . . . Coad said it was impossible to track who paid for the mailers because the anti-airport group reported making only a single $440,000 contribution to the slate organization."
"The mailers targeting Coad--sent by Voter Education Project, run by anti-airport consultants Arnold Forde and Stu Mollrich--devoted most of their space to attacking Coad's positions."
"Norby said the mailers were legal and helped him counteract Coad's personal wealth in the campaign. She lent her campaign about $500,000 for the race. State and federal law allow unlimited spending by a candidate on their own race."
Website Editor: Supevisors postponed voting on whether to put the matter to the voters in November, which would make it more difficult to change the ordinance.
"County supervisors will consider today a reform intended to block the type of campaign spending that brought hundreds of thousands of anti-airport dollars into the campaign that defeated incumbent Supervisor Cynthia Coad in March."
"At issue is the slate mailers that attracted more than $600,000 in contributions from those opposed to an El Toro airport, using most of the space to promote challenger Chris Norby or attack Coad."
"The slate mailers were not subject to the county's $1,000 contribution limit and provided a key boost to Norby's campaign, which had raised $227,000, according to the last available reports."
"The mailers also helped close the spending gap with Coad, who poured more than $400,000 of her own money into her campaign . . . Coad, who proposed the changes, has complained that she was unfairly forced to campaign against both Norby and anti-airport activists." Her proposal would not limit the amount that a wealthy candidate like Coad could contribute on her own behalf.
The agenda for tomorrow's Board of Supervisors meeting shows Supervisor Charles Smith appointing Mark S. Rosen "of Santa Ana" to the Airport Commission. This is Garden Grove City Councilman Mark Rosen.
The City of Garden Grove is a plaintiff in the lawsuit filed against the Board of Supervisors attempting to overturn Measure W. Garden Grove is also a member of OCRAA, another plaintiff in the lawsuit. Rosen is Garden Grove's rep to OCRAA.
Why does Supervisor Smith seek to reward those who sue the county by appointing one of their leaders to a commission concerned with the same general subject as the lawsuit? It is time for the county to cut the cord with OCRAA.
"ONTARIO -- A proposed 110-acre cargo facility at Ontario International Airport could begin the process of bringing the bulk of Southern California's air freight operations to the Inland Empire."
"The facility would most likely open in 2004, officials said. Combined with the development of all-cargo airports in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, the ONT project would give the Inland Empire the ability to take advantage of freight operations that are expected to skyrocket in the next 25 years."
"Much of the cargo now moving through ONT is carried in limited amounts in passenger aircraft, and, officials say, the proposed facility would give ONT the ability to handle increased numbers of all-cargo flights."
"An increase in use by freight companies like DHL and FedEx at ONT would go a long way toward relieving the overcrowded conditions of LAX, said Paul Haney, a spokesman for Los Angeles World Airports."
"Hundreds of farmers who will likely lose their land to the construction of a new Mexico City airport blocked all roads leading to a nearby town, then took seven police officers and court officials hostage. The protestors said Friday that they will kill the hostages if police do not release those [previously] arrested by police."
"16 people were injured and another 15 were arrested in an earlier anti-airport protest . . . The leaders of the [latest] uprising threatened to kill the hostages unless state officials released those protesters arrested during the first battle with police."
"The first confrontation began . . . when dozens of farmers wielding machetes arrived in a caravan of trucks and blocked a large portion of highway 25 miles northeast of Mexico City. As authorities arrived on the scene, the protesters began throwing rocks and attacked the riot gear-clad agents with machetes, metal poles and sticks, [a state spokesman] said."
Residents have for months protested government attempts to expropriate their lands for the six-runway, $2.3 billion , 11,000-acre airport project. "State Gov. Arturo Montiel . . . said the protesters 'needed to understand that a new international airport will benefit all Mexicans.' Mexico City’s existing airport, a 91-year-old facility on the eastern edge of town, cannot be expanded because it is bordered on three sides by urban areas."
"City officials want to know how two groups spent a $3.67-million grant to educate residents about an El Toro airport and whether any money is left over. City Councilman John Heffernan has asked the city manager to begin an inquiry and audit of the grant the city issued in March 2001 to the Airport Working Group and to Citizens for Jobs and the Economy."
"'I want to know what happened to the money,' Heffernan said. 'This is a multimillion-dollar expenditure of city funds. We should know what we got, what it was used for. And if there's money left, we should get it back.'"
"Heffernan made a similar request earlier this year, but failed to get any support on the council."
"'It's the public's money, and we welcome the review,' said Dave Ellis of the Airport Working Group. . . Ellis said his group does have a small amount of money left over from the original grant, but added that he did not know the exact amount."
"Bruce Nestande of Citizens for Jobs and the Economy said his group has no funds left over."
Website Editor: Questions have been raised as to whether the left-over money, reportedly several hundred thousand dollars, is being used to fund current litigation against Measure W.
A superior court judge has ruled that Nestande
and CJ&E must repay legal costs of the Measure W proponents
as a result of a failed pre-election lawsuit concerning the ballot title
and summary on the initiative's petitions.
El Toro Info Site report,
July 11, 2002
Navy letter is essential reading
A July 8, 2002 letter from the Principal Deputy to Assistant Secretary of the Navy H.T. Johnson is essential reading. The letter, posted here, is long on praise for the City of Irvine's efforts to develop the El Toro property consistent with Measure W and makes no mention of uncooperative county officials.
The letter pays no heed to the Measure W lawsuit by Newport Beach groups and OCRAA, an obstructionist group of North County city council representatives who seek to resurrect airport zoning and bar the land sale. It also makes no mention of the Airport Working Group's lawsuit against the Navy. Instead, the letter observes that, "The City's concepts have evolved in a manner that will return higher values for the taxpayers."
The letter also debunks pro-airport "Great Tax" allegations made against Measure W. It states, "The costs of the park plan will be borne by the project and its owners, not by the taxpayers of Orange County and the City of Irvine directly."
"The Navy supports fully the land use plan put forth by the City of Irvine, known as the Great Park Plan."
"The Navy will divide the former El Toro Marine base into as many as six parcels with buyers allowed to bid at auction on individual pieces -- or the base as a whole, a Navy official wrote Irvine leaders Monday."
"'The intent is to allow the public sale process to determine the highest possible value for the property, whether one parcel or multiple,' wrote Wayne Arny, a deputy to [H. T. Johnson] the Navy official overseeing the sale of El Toro."
"The Navy and Irvine will announce sale details at a news conference at El Toro on July 23."
"Arny wrote in the letter that the Navy may put the base up for sale
before the city completes annexation of it, but that it
will not close the sales and hand over the property until after annexation."
El Toro Info Site report,
July 10, 2002
Southern California Regional Airport Authority
update
The Southern California Regional Airport Authority, SCRAA, is flush with money, seeking more, and searching for a role in aviation planning. The joint power authority comprised of Los Angeles City and Los Angeles, San Bernadino, Riverside, and Orange Counties is one of the groups advocating a "regional solution" to aviation demand.
Documents obtained by this website through a Public Records Act request, show SCRAA had $655,289 in cash at the end of March 2002. Since then, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved payment of $50,000 of dues to the group at the request of Supervisor Charles Smith.
SCRAA also is seeking a large grant from the FAA for transportation planning.
Most of the agency disbursements so far have been to Peggy Ducey, SCRAA's Chief Administrative Officer and for clerical support. A public relations and media consultant has been retained along with legal counsel. Board members receive $125 per meeting attended.
Ms. Ducey has made several presentations on behalf of SCRAA proposing "Airports without Runways" using rail connections from the more populous counties to airports in the Inland Empire. The presentation says "Measure W prevents El Toro development as an airport" (leaving the option open if Measure W is overturned) and "Future Orange County passengers are estimated to be between 20-30 MAP".
Click here for her PowerPoint slides. Note: The file is large (1.6 MB) and requires Adobe Acrobat Reader.
"An environmental group filed suit Tuesday in an attempt to halt the city's [of Irvine's] largest development after the group abandoned an effort to put the project before voters. The suit, filed in Orange County Superior Court by Newport Beach-based Defend the Bay, claims the Northern Sphere's environmental impact report fails to adequately address the effects of the project."
"City officials said the lawsuit and the failed referendum effort are attempts by pro-airport forces in Newport Beach to keep hopes alive for an airport at El Toro."
"'I'm personally convinced Defend the Bay is part of a loose coalition trying to do everything it can to stop development around the base, because then an airport becomes less likely,' Councilman Chris Mears said."
"L.A. Mayor James K. Hahn has put forward a serious, if rather bizarre, proposal for 'renovating' instead of 'expanding' Los Angeles International Airport."
"Hahn says passenger traffic would be capped at 78 million passengers a year, about 25 percent more than currently use LAX, but far below the previous plan," from Mayor Richard Riordan.
"The Hahn plan begs a thousand questions that can only be answered by real leadership that brings together leaders from throughout Southern California and the airlines who create their own flight schedules and have never accepted voluntary caps on how much traffic they bring into an airport."
"The critical issue is, Hahn's cap on LAX passengers is just a theory. He hopes it will allow LAX to dominate the lucrative long-haul passenger market and leave short-haul flights to other airports, including Long Beach, Burbank, Ontario, Palmdale and John Wayne."
But that just won't happen by the magic of some invisible hand.
"The mayor needs to initiate serious talks with officials of the 100 or so government entities that fought former massive expansion plan. He needs to get Orange County to accept its share of passenger traffic and to win support from the airports other than Ontario and Palmdale, which are owned by the city."
Click here for the full text of the editorial.
With the passage of Measure W, the battle over El Toro reuse has shifted away from the public political arena to less visible activities such as lobbying and litigation.
Irvine-Navy negotiations continue over how the former base will be broken into parcels for sale. The plan should be public this month. It will contain commercial development but also substantial amounts of educational, park, public use, and nature preserve acreage.
The Navy says it will wait to close the sale of the property until after Irvine annexes El Toro. Irvine land use control and zoning will yield a higher market value for the Navy.
The Navy has taken back maintenance of the base from the county.
Cynthia Coad's flip-flop vote against a pre-annexation agreement between Irvine and the County will slow the process by a few months and cost the federal government money. It may also cancel some concessions which Irvine was willing to make to the county - including funding for north county parks and the set aside of over 100 acres of land that the county wants to use.
The Orange County Regional Airport Authority, OCRAA, and private groups from Newport Beach are suing to try to overturn Measure W. This month, they will ask a Los Angeles County judge to block implementation of the measure pending a full trial. With the Navy moving slowly on divesting the property, it is hard to see how a case can be made for an injunction. The full trial on Measure W is months away.
The same parties are suing the Department of Defense and the Navy to block sale of the land.
Meanwhile, another judge ruled that some of the same pro-airport groups must repay the legal fees of Measure W proponents. Bruce Nestande and Citizens for Jobs and the Economy lost a lawsuit to throw out the Measure W petitions, claiming that the Title and Summary assigned by the County Counsel was flawed. It will take months of wrangling before they cough up the money but the ruling is a warning to those who bring frivolous lawsuits against the public will.
A coalition of LAX neighbors is fighting on several fronts to restrict future growth of Los Angeles International and to shift the burden to Orange County. Mayor Hahn has given in to them. This is a multi-faceted effort.
"A gunman opened fire Thursday at Los Angeles International Airport near the ticket counter of Israel's El Al Airlines, killing two people and injuring at least four others before an [El Al] airline security officer shot him to death, officials said."
"The gunman shot dead a female El Al ticket agent in her 20s and a 46-year-old diamond importer -- both Israeli citizens -- investigators said." The Register reported the gunman to be "Hesham Mohamed Hedayet, who moved to the United States from Egypt 10 years ago."
"Police and FBI authorities said it was too early to determine a motive for the attack, but it appeared to be an isolated incident and not a terrorist attack. [However], Israeli officials in Los Angeles said it appeared to be a terrorist act."
"'The way it was conducted is very much similar to previous attacks throughout the years over El Al counters,' said Yuval Rotem, the Israeli consul general in Los Angeles. 'Therefore, unfortunately, given this history, we presume that it may and would appear to be a terrorist attack.'"
"California Gov. Gray Davis said he was 'saddened and outraged' by the shootings but urged Californians not to let the incident stop them from celebrating the Fourth of July."
The New York Times reports, "The attack is certain to add impetus to a $9.6 billion plan proposed earlier this week by Mayor Hahn to renovate the airport and upgrade its security facilities. The key to the system proposed by the mayor is that everyone would be screened for weapons at a new ground transportation terminal a mile east of the airport, before they even came onto airport property. They would take shuttle buses to the passenger terminals. 'The idea is to build enough space, so that you can screen everybody before they get into the terminal,' Mayor Hahn said."
"In putting together his $9.6-billion modernization plan for Los Angeles International Airport, Mayor James K. Hahn has in effect declared to other political leaders around Southern California that much of the region's need to handle millions more passengers and tons of additional freight in coming years will have to be solved somewhere else."
"Right now, there is no place else--all other airports in the region face limits on their ability to grow. And Hahn lacks the authority to force airlines to change the number or the mix of planes that they schedule into LAX's gates."
"Hahn's solution has been to design a plan that simply has no room for more planes." "Some say the design may discourage passengers from using LAX. 'If you make it so lengthy or onerous to go through those checkpoints, part of the message is to go to Burbank or Long Beach or John Wayne,' said Steven Erie, a UC San Diego political science professor who is writing a book about the region's infrastructure."
"Hahn hopes to limit capacity in part by encouraging the airlines to take commuter flights to airports in Long Beach, Ontario, Burbank and Orange County. But many who were briefed on his plan before Tuesday's announcement are asking how the mayor will persuade airlines, which set their own flight schedules, to move service out of LAX."
"Getting the airlines to approve the plan will be key for Hahn because carriers would pay for about half the renovation through higher rent and landing fees."
Read this complete story and others related on the message board.
Post comments on "What do you get for $9.6 billion?" here.
Assembly bill AB2333 will be reconsidered in the State Senate Transportation Committee on August 6. The bill by the LAX neighborhood legislator would make it law to consider "environmental justice" in the allocation of airport capacity in Southern California.
A New York Times article dated July 1 provides a preliminary look at the evolving plans for non-aviation reuse of El Toro. The project is a work in progress. More complete information will be available from the City of Irvine later this month.
Once the City and Department of Navy have come to agreement, Irvine will use the plan as the basis for an environmental impact report in support of its annexation bid. The Navy has said that it will not sell the land prior to annexation since the Irvine zoning will produce higher land values for the federal government.
"Aging Los Angeles International Airport would be transformed by a $9.6-billion modernization effort that would dramatically alter the airfield, ban traffic in the central terminal area and rely on an elevated train to link LAX with new facilities to the east, according to a plan to be unveiled today."
"It also calls for runway modifications to guard against accidents or near misses and to prepare for the 555-seat Airbus A380. Mayor James K. Hahn will outline the much-anticipated proposal this morning in a ceremony at LAX."
"The plan would seek to cap airport traffic at 78 million passengers a year, in part by eliminating 11 gates. Limiting capacity would put additional pressure on the region's other airports--including John Wayne International Airport, Long Beach Airport and Ontario International Airport--to accommodate more passengers."
"City officials outlined the proposal, which they hope to complete in phases over 10 years, in an exclusive briefing with The Times. It will take two years for the city to finish environmental studies, hold public hearings and present the plan to various agencies, officials say."
"The airlines would pay for about half of the renovation through higher rents and landing fees, with the remainder coming from a $1.50 fee added to passenger tickets, from federal transportation funds and from bonds financed by income from airport concessionaires."
"Airlines worry that the plan costs too much and adds too little capacity. City officials admit that the plan is going to be a hard sell with the airlines."
"The ... road show went to the airlines and there were certain things we had to tell them to get a grip on," said Airport Commission President Ted Stein. 'No. 1, this mayor is not going to allow this plan to be designed for more than 78 million annual passengers. No. 2, there will not be a fifth runway. And No. 3, instead of having more gates, you're going to have less. But, by the way, we're going to ask you to help pay for this.'"
"Proponents say they can cap operations by providing fewer parking spaces for aircraft and by encouraging airlines to bring international flights to LAX and take commuter flights to other regional facilities. But the carriers control flight schedules and have made it clear that they don't want to shift flights away from LAX."
Click here for the complete article.
Website editor: There is a lively battle raging over the expansion of Chicago's O'Hare Airport. It remains to be seen how successful Hahn and LAX neighbors will be at capping another one of the nation's premier airports.
"City officials will start an educational program . . . about the effects expanded flights at Long Beach Airport will have . . . the numbers of resident complaints about possible noise violations at the airport have jumped."
"Airport Manager Chris Kunze believes Long Beach residents are 'jittery' about the prospect of increased flights at the airport and are jumping the gun when they hear any noises from the facility."
"There are more than 1,200 flights that originate daily at the airport, the vast majority of them by small private planes, helicopters, commuter aircraft, military planes and corporate and cargo jets, Kunze said. 'In the whole spectrum of things, only a small percent of activity involves the airlines,' Kunze said."
"But the commercial carriers remain a public focus, especially because of Long Beach Airport's emergence as an alternative location for passenger jets to fly into as Los Angeles International Airport wrangles with passenger limits and the region looks for an alternative to the voter-defeated El Toro Airport in Orange County."
"Annual passengers going through the airport could reach 3 million."
Kunze said city ordinances and a lawsuit settlement OK'd in 1995 by a federal appeals court . . . set 41 slots - a slot is one takeoff and one landing - as the maximum number that can occur at the airport."
"Noise standards and measurements used when the settlement and ordinances were drawn set a maximum amount of noise that can be generated by commercial jetliners - and that total was calculated to be equivalent to the noise that 41 slots would generate. If the 41 slots are operating inside that noise budget, there is room for more flights, Kunze said."
Today's commercial jets fly more quietly, and the noise any plane makes can vary depending on its passenger load, the amount of fuel it is carrying and methods the pilot uses to take off and land.
Website Editor: This is why an increase in allowed passengers and flights at John Wayne Airport hopefully will not increase the noise impact on nearby residents over what was envisioned in the 1985 JWA settlement agreement.
Click here for previous news stories