No: Citing Noise, Safety, ‘Peace of Mind’

There appears little common ground in the debate over whether to build a civilian passenger-cargo airport at El Toro Marine Corps Air Station once the military leaves by 1999.

An unscientific survey by The Times shows deep divisions and resentment over the issue among many Orange County residents.

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If you just go over and look at LAX and see what the area is like around there, I don’t think that’s something that we’d want in Orange County.

Jeff Andrews

37

Trabuco Canyon

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It would cost millions of taxpayer dollars for toxic cleanup, as well as the cost of the airport itself.

Mary Ellin Watson

62

Laguna Hills

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I am a teacher and the decibel level will definitely hurt the learning environment for our children.

Nancy Brown

44

Coto de Caza

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International airports do not belong in residential areas, whether it’s Newport Beach or South County.

Pamela Shaw

33

Foothill Ranch

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I’m very much against an international airport at El Toro for traffic reasons, for noise reasons and because of the imminent danger to residents of Leisure World. One of the runways now is right above my house.

Miriam Gitin

78

Laguna Hills

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I’m a retired airline captain. No commercial airline is interested in El Toro. No pilot with any brains would want to take off into mountains.

Don Karn

62

Mission Viejo

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To the Orange County Board of Supervisors, I say to you: Any public official who promotes economic interests at the expense of the health, safety and general welfare of human beings should be recalled from office for violating the public trust.

Debbie Anderson

39

Aliso Viejo

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This whole endeavor is unconscionable. It smacks of pure greed with no thought for the common man.

June Snyder

63

Laguna Hills

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The skies are crowded as it is. It will be far too dangerous to add more commercial planes and business flights. So I’m against it for safety reasons, because of pollution and for peace of mind.

Sylvia Evans

80

Laguna Hills

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I do not want that airport. No way. The noise is so bad now that I can’t talk to my husband at dinner time when the planes are overhead. I can’t talk on the phone. The noise is giving me a headache and it would only be worse.

Gaye Wolson

69

Laguna Hills, Leisure World

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It will destroy the nice, small-community type atmosphere. It will pollute the air and the airstrip approach pattern is right over a bunch of schools. There is just no way that could help our community.

Sue Kauffman

40

Laguna Niguel

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Both my place of work and my home lie directly under the flight path. One flight a minute is just not going to be acceptable.

David H. Melilli

22

Laguna Niguel

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How on earth can the FAA blatantly ignore the pilots union’s concerns over the safety of that airport? It’s ridiculous.

Donna Meehan

50

Laguna Niguel

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A regional airport should be located out at March Air Force base with a MetroLink high-speed rail-type connection that people could pick up.

Gary Itano

47

Newport Beach

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The El Toro ‘Y,’ which is already a nightmare, will be just ridiculous. I don’t think it’s going to be a nice place to live down here if it goes in.

Holly Hirneise

42

Laguna Niguel

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We have plenty of airports around here already. If you want more space, just make the existing ones larger. Think about the Long Beach airport, it’s not utilized at all.

Alan Richardson

67

Fullerton

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There should not be an airport there in the middle of so many communities, it will ruin our quality of life. It will be impossible to live next to it. I once lived in Playa del Rey next to Los Angeles International Airport--I know what I’m talking about.

Sally Gilmore

63

Lake Forest

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I’m totally against an airport in south Orange County just to make some fat cats in Newport Beach rich. It’s wrong as wrong can be.

William Strang

62

Aliso Viejo

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I had the misfortune five years ago of buying a home that is now located less than two miles from the end of what’s proposed to be the active runway. Basically, my home is worthless and we have nowhere to go if this airport is crammed down our throats. I see El Segundo happening all over again. It’s very distressing.

Geri Vasilia

44

Irvine