IRVINE : TV Town Meeting Planned on El Toro

The Chamber of Commerce plans to hold an electronic town meeting on the conversion of the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. It will allow residents to ask questions and express their views.

A date for the meeting hasn’t been selected, but chamber officials said it will occur within the next few months, once a decision is made on which group will craft a redevelopment plan for the base.

Organizers see the meeting as a citywide event that would be broadcast live on cable television. Residents could call in from home to question panelists. Viewers might be asked to fill out surveys to measure public opinion on the El Toro issue.

Chamber officials hope to have a city council member, planning and aviation experts, as well as a representative from the Department of Defense, on hand to answer questions about the conversion process.

The purpose of the forum is less to foster heated debate on the airport issue than to offer residents information about the different redevelopment options and what they would mean to the city, said Jacquie Ellis, executive vice president of the chamber.

“We don’t want to have any slant to it,” Ellis said. “This is to be a strictly neutral presentation. We want feedback from the community.”

Councilwoman Paula Werner expressed support for the forum, saying it will give residents a chance to have their questions about El Toro addressed by experts.