FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE          CONTACT: Kim Koeppen
August 15, 2000                          (714) 834-3550
 

Wilson One Unhappy Fellow
Supervisor Tom Wilson expresses frustration at the lack of final action to approve the Master Lease.
 

When faced with the deadline for signing a Master Lease with the Navy only two short weeks and one Board meeting away…Supervisor Tom Wilson expressed great frustration about the latest stall in the approval process.  “During this entire process, I have had moments of optimism and moments of skepticism – Back to optimism then back to skepticism.  I am now a skeptic!” said Wilson during a lengthy discussion at Tuesday’s meeting of the Board of  Supervisors.

Wilson voiced his concerns over the fact that just yesterday, less than 24 hours before the Board was set to potentially approve the Master Lease with the Navy for  MCAS El Toro, the Board offices were briefed by McCutcheon Doyle, the special counsel for environmental issues and hazardous clean up at El Toro.  The briefing laid out a frightening picture of potential environmental liability to the county should the Board enter into the lease as it is currently written.

Frustrated with this eleventh hour report, Wilson cut to the chase at the Board meeting asking why are we just now hearing about these grave concerns, when this lease document that has contained this particular language for 23 months.  He further noted that dozens of county staff have had possession of this document for months and nobody has raised these concerns until now.  “It appears to me – and of course we all know that in this business – perception is reality --- this is a last ditch effort to show we are being prudent stewards of care when it comes to the Master Lease – but it sure looks to me like we are charting a course to close El Toro – and I don’t like being on that ship!”

Wilson’s point is well made.  Over the last two weeks, in conjunction with the Chairman’s office and Rob Richardson, LRA Interim Executive Director, Wilson has been in direct contact with Bill Cassidy, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy in Washington D. C.   Prior to these intense conversations, Wilson asked for and received a detailed list of any and all concerns related to the Master Lease.  Those matters have since been resolved.  But, at no time were today’s specific issues ever brought forth.

Wilson shares the serious concerns for the unknown environmental contaminants that may eventually be discovered at MCAS El Toro, and that is precisely why we should not move haphazardly through this Master Lease.  Wilson stated, “We must keep a strong, collaborative relationship going with the Navy as we enter into this arrangement and move ahead in good faith and work on resolving these alleged issues post signing”.  The Navy is mandated by law to remediate environmental issues, once the county takes ownership of the base through transfer, the Navy is still obligated to remediate.   “We will hold the Navy to that commitment”, said Wilson. “We must be mindful of the fact that this property will never be without risk, we are seeking to gain possession of a former military base, not an organic farm.  Who are we kidding, we have been involved in this process for years now?  DTSC and EPA have been involved in the clean up plan for MCAS El Toro - are we suggesting that all these entities, including the Navy haven’t been doing their jobs?”

Wilson has been a strong advocate for securing the non-aviation Master Lease with a five year term, thus allowing the option to establish non-aviation revenue-generating opportunities at MCAS El Toro.  But time is running out and to use Wilson’s ball game analogy: “It’s the bottom of the ninth, two outs and nobody on base – hit the game winner, that home run, we win, the Navy wins, and above all , the people win – but if we strike out – who wins? This could be the longest overtime ever in the history of a ball game.”