John Wayne Short-Term Lot Closing

The venerable short-term parking lot at John Wayne Airport, which has provided 22 years of easy, walking-distance access to the passenger terminal, is closing.

Airport officials announced Wednesday that the $15-per-day lot, directly in front of Eddie Martin Terminal, will be unavailable for public parking beginning Friday to make way for a new airport entrance road and space for rental cars.

Although the closure will eliminate 800 public parking spaces, airport officials said there will be little or no adverse impact. A new, $12-a-day, 1,476-space parking garage opened in March, only a tenth of a mile north of the existing terminal, which is named for a county aviation pioneer. A free shuttle is available for travelers who do not want to walk to the terminal.

The short-term lot has been in service since the existing terminal was built in 1967, according to airport spokeswoman Kathie Rutherford. Handicapped parking, until now available for $5 per day in the short-term lot, will be relocated to the old rental car parking area between the existing terminal and the new parking garage. Twenty spaces will be reserved for free handicapped parking there, but vehicles must display appropriate identification placards.

Metered parking in the old lot south of the terminal will remain open, officials said, at a cost of 25 cents for 10 minutes.

Additional parking is available for $5 per day in the Main Street lots across the San Diego Freeway from the airport near Red Hill Avenue, underneath the aircraft landing pattern.

The rearrangement of parking space is part of the $310-million John Wayne Airport expansion program, which includes a new $50-million passenger terminal scheduled to open on April 1, 1990. The program also includes 8,400 new parking spaces in four new parking structures, new freeway ramps, airfield improvements and the widening of Campus Drive.

Airport Parking Change The short-term parking lot in front of the existing John Wayne Airport terminal will close Friday. New roads will cover part of the lot; rental car agencies will use the remaining area. Parking will be available at the new southwest parking structure and at long-term lots on the north side of the San Diego Freeway.