Airport, Toll Road Bills Offered : Neighbors Push for State Limits on Jet Noise Levels

State legislation designed to help airport neighbors recover damages for jet noise was introduced Monday, marking airport homeowner groups’ first attempt to take the offensive in a three-year-old legislative battle over California’s airports.

The bill, by state Sen. Robert Presley (D-Riverside), would establish noise standards around airports as a matter of state law and allow homeowners to use violations of those standards in lawsuits, as evidence of property damage or emotional distress.

Rezoning Alternative Attacked

The measure would also require airport operators to explore all means of reducing jet noise before neighborhoods around airports could be rezoned to eliminate residential uses--an action being contemplated by the Orange County Board of Supervisors today as it considers a redevelopment plan for the neighborhoods south of John Wayne Airport.

Presley’s bill, introduced at the request of the Orange County Airport Working Group and several other airport-activist organizations throughout the state, represents the homeowners’ first attempt to take the initiative in the legislative arena, said Barbara Lichman, executive director of Working Group.

For the past two years, owners of property near the airport have fought legislation written by Assemblyman Richard Robinson (D-Garden Grove) that would have severely limited their right to file lawsuits over airport noise. Twice, Robinson’s bills cleared the Legislature, but both times they were vetoed by Gov. George Deukmejian.

“All kinds of things can change, once those airports start operating,” said Presley, who initially supported Robinson’s legislation but changed his mind after meeting with homeowners from Orange County and Burbank.

“They can bring in more flights, they can bring in different types of airplanes,” he said. “My feeling is we ought to find some medium, reasonable ground between the operators of airports and the people who have all the problems with them.”

‘Good-Neighbor Policy’

Assemblyman Gray Davis (D-Beverly Hills), principal co-author of the bill introduced Monday, said, “For the past several years, the homeowners have been on the defensive . . . . But if you play defense forever, the other team will eventually score. For years, those neighbors have been treated as second-class citizens. I believe the bill will promote a good-neighbor policy between airports and the neighborhoods surrounding them.”

Davis’ district includes neighborhoods that have been battling with Burbank Airport for years. Presley represents Palm Springs, where development around the airport is accelerating, and areas near Ontario.