Burbank Commissioner Objects : Garcin Reelected Airport Authority President

Robert W. Garcin was elected president of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority on Tuesday for the fifth consecutive year, despite the objections of Commissioner Mary Lou Howard who protested that Garcin’s combative and sometimes sarcastic style antagonizes powerful politicians and threatens the airport’s future.

Garcin was reelected by a vote of 7 to 1. Howard cast the only vote against him.

“I think he’s been a good president, but he’s alienated a lot of people,” Howard told the other commissioners before the vote at their regular monthly meeting.

The airport has many important projects to accomplish, she said, “and we need someone who doesn’t antagonize people, in Washington and elsewhere.”

Garcin has verbally fenced with a number of Los Angeles officeholders, especially Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City).

The airport is planning to build a new terminal in the next five to 10 years, at an estimated cost of $100 million. About 80% of the cost would normally be covered by federal grants, which have become an issue in the antagonism between Garcin and Berman.

Berman and other Los Angeles politicians, under pressure from noise protesters in the eastern San Fernando Valley, have been demanding that the airport authority try to re-route at least half the jetliners leaving the airport toward the east, over the three cities that own it.

The airport authority--led by Garcin--has responded that it is powerless to change air traffic control decisions by pilots and the Federal Aviation Administration. Pilots say they almost always take off over Los Angeles neighborhoods because that route is safer for many reasons.

The feud between Garcin and Berman grew more bitter in June, 1987, when Berman succeeded in attaching an amendment to the federal budget that would have prohibited the FAA from providing funds for the new terminal until the airport authority gave in to Berman’s demands. The amendment later was killed.

At the time, Garcin said Berman had used “distortions, inaccuracies and lies” to mislead Congress. Berman refused to meet with him to discuss airport business until Garcin apologized, which Garcin has refused to do.

Garcin has also been the target of protests by anti-noise homeowner groups, which have accused him of being caustic and hostile to them.

Each of the three cities that own the airport appoints three commissioners to the authority. Garcin, a former mayor of Glendale, has been a commissioner for 10 years. Howard, former mayor of Burbank, has been a member for three years.

When Howard was nominated Monday for reelection as secretary of the board, Garcin commented that “I am very pleased to have Mrs. Howard as secretary,” adding with a smile that “I’d appreciate it if you’d help me with that weakness of mine.”

Howard said after the meeting that “I’ll be very glad to work with Mr. Garcin to help him overcome his inadequacies.”

She said she felt that she had to protest because “it was very wrong for Mr. Garcin to call our congressman a liar, in very poor taste. We’re in no position to get into a name-calling contest. We need these people’s help.”

Garcin said he was “so thrilled that seven of my colleagues saw fit to give me their confidence.”