Opponents Plan Protest of South County Airport Sites

Several mayors and residents from south Orange County plan to voice opposition today to placing a new airport in their area.

The opponents plan to attend a meeting of the Airport Site Coalition, a group commissioned by the Board of Supervisors in 1987 to conduct a search for a place to put a new airport.

Among the 17 sites that the coalition has identified is one off Ortega Highway east of San Juan Capistrano and another in a canyon in the undeveloped portion of Rancho Mission Viejo. Another, although it is actually in San Diego County, has raised concerns among San Clemente residents because of its proposed takeoff pattern.

Letter to Board

Courtney Wierciocah, executive assistant for the Board of Supervisors, said that the Ortega Highway site has been dropped from consideration, but the protesters said they still intend to bring it up at the meeting, which will be at the Fluor Corp. headquarters in Irvine.

The mayors of Dana Point, San Clemente, Mission Viejo and San Juan Capistrano recently signed a letter to the Board of Supervisors protesting the idea of putting an airport in the area.

“What we’re really saying to the board is not to waste any more of the taxpayers’ money,” said San Juan Capistrano Mayor Gary L. Hausdorfer, who drafted the letter. “There just isn’t the physical room to put something that large, and there are just too many people in the south county for that to be a practical move.

“I think the new improvements at John Wayne Airport will serve the people for a while. If we need additional property, I think LAX or Ontario International Airport will do--or build one in the desert, but not in Orange County,” Hausdorfer added.

The coalition initially planned to narrow the possibilities to four final sites today, according to Al Bell, the group’s executive director. However, that action has been postponed for the coalition’s meeting in May.

Instead, coalition officials will use today’s meeting as an opportunity to identify questions, concerns and new information about all of the possible sites, Bell said.

Chamber of commerce offices in Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano and San Clemente plan to be represented at the meeting today, Mimi Collier, executive director of the San Clemente chamber, said.

“Right now, our biggest push is to have the business community become aware that there are two sites in the area and to have input in the process,” Collier said. “We want to make sure that our interests are given a chance to develop”.