Interim Terminal for Mugu Airstrip Backed : Aviation: Study says cost of the facility for the commercial venture would be $11 million rather than $142 million for a permanent one.

Officials working to open the runway at Point Mugu to commercial use endorsed a report Wednesday that recommends building an interim passenger terminal before plunking down more than $140 million on a permanent facility.

Meeting in a special three-hour study session at the Camarillo Airport, the Point Mugu Regional Airport Authority accepted the final feasibility study looking at how to convert the Navy airstrip to joint public and military use.

“It would take a long time to get a full terminal,” said Supervisor Frank Schillo, who heads the authority. “A temporary terminal could be a very good first phase.”

The authority is preparing a formal proposal to the Navy, which two weeks ago requested details about how the authority proposes to operate the facility. The report estimates that a permanent airport terminal would cost $142 million, but recommends that a temporary building be constructed for about $11 million.

The inch-thick feasibility study also documents the long-term benefits of opening the 11,000-foot runway at Point Mugu to passenger planes and overnight package deliveries, concluding that an airport would create 20,000 jobs.

Those working on the conversion said two cargo companies already have expressed an interest in operating at such a facility.

“It would be an airport about the size of the Palm Springs airport,” said Tim Merwin, who helped write the study. “It would primarily be commuter and short-haul service that would be provided.”

The feasibility study omits the estimated economic impact to Ventura County. But the Palm Springs airport contributed about $875 million in direct and indirect revenue to the region, the analysis states.

Analysts said an airport at Point Mugu could support as many as 2.5 million passengers a year, although realistically it would service 500,000 to 800,000 commuters a year.

In addition to the airport’s package-delivery opportunities, local farmers could ship produce from Point Mugu rather than trucking millions of dollars worth of fruit and vegetables to Los Angeles each year, the study said.

In 1993, the Navy offered to open its runway at Point Mugu to commercial use if local officials could put together an operational plan.

Since then, a task force has been studying the best way to finance a terminal and get the airport opened for passenger and cargo service.

The final feasibility report approved Wednesday is the result of two years of research by the Southern California Assn. of Governments, which has been advising the Point Mugu Regional Airport Authority.

Supervisor Schillo and Port Hueneme Councilman Anthony Volante will meet with Capt. Stephen D. Beal, the new Point Mugu commander, on Nov. 13 to discuss initial plans for the passenger terminal.

The authority is drafting a more-detailed proposal that would result in a formal agreement between the Navy and the authority, and Schillo is confident that a contract can be signed before the end of the year.

“We’re not going to reinvent a wheel,” he said. “We’ll use other [agreements] that the Navy has signed as a model. The military is doing the same thing in other places.”

Once an agreement is signed, the authority would become eligible for federal funds to pay for environmental reviews and a passenger terminal.

Delivery companies such as Federal Express and United Parcel Service could use the airstrip once the environmental reports are approved. That would begin generating revenues for the authority through landing and other fees.

In the meantime, the authority has no staff, no bylaws and no money.

The four member cities of Ventura, Oxnard, Thousand Oaks and Port Hueneme joined Ventura County in pledging $20,000 each to the authority. Camarillo council members have declined to join the authority, saying too much noise and traffic would be generated by the facility.

While the authority is now advertising for clerical help, most of the legwork is being done by county officials.

Auditor-Controller Thomas O. Mahon agreed Wednesday to oversee a finance committee, and other committees were formed Wednesday to study freight and cargo opportunities, potential facilities and environmental issues.

The authority next must decide where to put a proposed passenger terminal.

The feasibility study recommends three sites. A 64-acre site adjacent to base property is the most likely site, although it would have to be bought from the landowners.