Airport at El Toro Isn’t the Answer

Re James Grier’s op-ed article, “With No International Airport, O.C. as World Player Won’t Fly,” July 7, on the potential demise of Orange County as a world player if we don’t build an international airport at El Toro:

New York has its suburbia because no one likes to live in New York. They would rather commute to towns where there is space for lawns to grow. Los Angeles has its suburbia in Orange County because not many people like to live in smoggy L.A. They would rather commute to a quieter, healthier Orange County.

Grier doesn’t want Orange County to remain an outpost. He equates the lack of more golf courses with a lack of progress, which is pretty weird. His big sin is not taking into account the total impact of a commercial airport in Orange County, assuming people will fork out $2.5 billion in taxes for realigning the runways. You might remember the fiasco of the new airport in Denver.

Does he think that the already dense population of Orange County, especially around the Marine Corps Air Station at El Toro, is going to welcome declining property values or the unbelievable increase in noise decibels from constant landings and takeoffs of planes or the actual fallout in the ozone from the planes’ emissions?

I say let Orange County remain a bedroom suburbia. Why do we need to be a world player? We have plenty of small, thriving industries.

E.H. QUILTER

Laguna Beach

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No one can argue with the premise that in the long run, a large general passenger and cargo airport will eventually be beneficial to Orange County, but the problem is in the location.

The present El Toro site is dangerously unsatisfactory. Located in the heart of a residential area with crosswinds and adjacent mountains, it just “won’t fly.” The present use by military aircraft cannot be compared with general passenger and cargo planes. Military aircraft have a much greater power per weight ratio and can maneuver much easier than commercial aircraft.

The El Toro airport opponents, plus all the more recent unbiased studies, have pointed out these and other reasons why this site is unusable. With modern transportation systems available, there is no reason why Orange County’s airport cannot be built to the sparsely populated east, in the Riverside County area, for instance.

An international airport in the Riverside region, with a modern high-speed connecting train system, would satisfy Orange County’s needs as well as San Diego’s, and would not present the dangerous negative factors of El Toro.

We should not allow some Newport Beach residents, unhappy over some bothersome noise from John Wayne Airport, and some wealthy investors who stand to gain huge profits, to force a dangerous facility upon the rest of Orange County’s residents.

JAMES SETTLES

Laguna Niguel

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James Grier’s point on Orange County’s need for an international airport is well taken. Although no one wants a noisy airport in their backyard, it is also unfair to dump all of our needs on the back of Los Angeles. We could excuse ourselves when the county was nothing more than a bedroom community for Los Angeles. Since we have long since outgrown that status and are trying to position our county as a lead player in the international trade, we need our own international airport as much as a hummingbird needs its wings.

With the continuing downsizing of our military and increasing need to trim our federal deficit, the federal government should seriously consider ceding a portion of the huge Camp Pendleton area as our own international traffic modem in return for a portion of its income.

JOHN T. CHIU

Corona del Mar

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The article by James Grier is another in the constant drumbeat to sway public opinion in south Orange County into believing that without a commercial airport at El Toro our future is a dark abyss.

The article compares Orange County to our neighbors in Los Angeles County who, according to his argument, bask in economic health due to their preeminent position accorded them by LAX. The truth is that Los Angeles County has far more going for it due to the Port of Los Angeles, Long Beach, the entertainment industry, manufacturing,, refineries, railroads and corporate headquarters than Orange County will ever have.

So, by his argument, we should sacrifice our children, our environment and our quality of life on the blood-drenched altar of corporate greed so that we too can live like the citizens of Los Angeles County. Who, by the way, have left in droves for the relative peace and quiet of Orange County.

The whole point of the argument against the El Toro airport is that we don’t, repeat don’t, want Orange County to become another Los Angeles. The threat that our salaries and wages won’t match the average in Los Angeles County is the price we will pay for the higher quality of life we enjoy here.

MURRAY PAGE

Mission Viejo

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James F. Grier dismisses Orange County as an “afterthought” to Los Angeles based on weak, unsubstantiated criteria.

As a native of Orange County, I spent a significant amount of time in Los Angeles, and looked to it as the center of activity. However, I have now worked in Orange County for over five years in both business and government, and have been impressed with the extent to which Orange County has become more self-assured and the forger of our own destiny, a leader in technology and a true melting pot.

On the issue of the international airport, [Grier] neglects to identify how many dollars are lost due to the lack of an international airport, how many international flights do not take off, the number of passengers served from Orange and San Diego counties, and how many jobs would be created.

He states that Orange County needs to have a major city with a population of 1 million in order to be significant, yet neglects to identify the benefits of such cities and ignores the fact that much innovation takes place in edge cities on the perimeter of large cities.

And since when was the number of golf courses the only indicator of Orange County’s suitability as a tourist destination? Do the miles of free public beaches, mountains, and the glorious weather count for nothing?

LAURA C. CURRAN

Tustin