Packard: South County Cities Need Say on Base : El Toro: Congressman says he will be watching the nine-member agency to ensure the area is ‘treated fairly’ in the site conversion decision.

Lending his political clout to south Orange County cities, Rep. Ron Packard (R-Oceanside) said Tuesday that the area should have a greater say in the redevelopment planning for the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station and should “not roll over” if they feel their interests are not being protected.

Packard stopped short of criticizing the structure of the El Toro planning agency proposed last month by the Board of Supervisors and Irvine, saying it is a local decision.

But the congressman, who sits on the powerful House Appropriations Committee and whose district includes part of South County, said he would be watching the El Toro agency to ensure South County cities are “treated fairly.”

The proposed nine-member board that will pick the final base conversion plan includes the five supervisors, three Irvine representatives and one from Lake Forest. The 29 remaining Orange County cities will be invited to sit on an advisory panel that will screen redevelopment plans.

“If (South County leaders) have deep concerns, they ought to do what they can to change the structure” of the agency, Packard said in an interview following his private meeting with the city officials. “I think this is of such importance that nobody ought to roll over and say ‘We have put up a good fight.’ The planning has got to be done well.”

But he also acknowledged the county’s difficulty in reaching a compromise on the makeup of the planning agency, and warned against prolonging the debate over whether a commercial airport should be developed at the base. That political fight could force the federal government to take the decision away from local officials, Packard said.

“I think we all know and agree that we will never have an opportunity to plan a major part of Orange County like we do under this scenario,” Packard said of the 4,700-acre site. “My hope is that one issue or one question will not so dominate that it will cloud or influence or negate any planning effort.”

Packard is a longtime opponent of a commercial airport at El Toro, favoring instead general aviation operations once the Marines move out in 1999.

“I have no solutions for (South County officials), and I am not going to be carrying any legislation or any other effort to try to prevent anything from happening at this point,” he added. “We are not at that point yet.”

Laguna Niguel Councilwoman Patricia C. Bates said afterward that she was surprised to learn that commercial aviation could operate at El Toro on an interim basis as the Marines move out and the redevelopment plan is being finalized, with approval from the El Toro planning agency.

The board “certainly has authority we were not aware of. It’s a very, very powerful group,” she added.

Laguna Hills Councilwoman Melody Carruth added that Packard “was pleased that we stood up for the citizens of South County to make sure their voices are heard.” In addition to Bates and Carruth, council members from Dana Point, Laguna Beach and Lake Forest attended, as well as a representative from Leisure World of Laguna Hills.

The session also signaled the continuing determination of South County cities to influence the El Toro planning process even though they are expected to be left off the county’s decision-making board.

South County officials plan to meet this month in Washington with officials of federal agencies that will be involved in the base conversion, including the Federal Aviation Administration.

Fearing the FAA has already decided that El Toro should become an international airport, Mission Viejo Mayor Susan Withrow said the delegation wants to make sure “there’s no preconceived notion and that they are going to go into this (planning process) with an open mind.”