Airport Foe Cites Missed Chance in El Toro Panel Appointment

The appointment of an outspoken supporter of a commercial airport at the El Toro base to a panel overseeing its future is a missed opportunity for airport opponents, one of them said Friday.

“It’s a huge loss,” said Irvine city councilman and airport critic Barry Hammond. “I’m disappointed South County officials couldn’t see the big picture on this thing.”

Newport Beach Councilman Thomas C. Edwards was appointed late Thursday to the 13-member commission, created by Measure A, the initiative calling for an airport at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station and approved by voters in November 1994. In December, the Orange County Board of Supervisors adopted the commission’s recommendation to pursue plans to turn El Toro into an airport.

The question of who serves on the panel has been the subject of an ongoing dispute. County officials say the panel should represent a wide array of interests, including pro- and anti-airport forces, and repeatedly have asked elected officials in South County to join.

South County officials have repeatedly refused, protesting a process they say is biased in favor of an airport and ignores their concerns.

Hammond decided to break the stalemate recently when he sought an opening on the commission. He said it would have put him and the panel’s other airport opponents in a position to fill vacancies--and hopefully wrest control away from airport supporters.

But Hammond’s decision sparked a backlash. Irvine Mayor Christina L. Shea and her colleagues, who are boycotting the commission, succeeded in forcing Hammond to remove himself from it.

“It’s not a good idea to legitimize a process that we don’t believe in,” explained Shea, who like other opponents is concerned about an airport’s impact on noise, traffic, pollution and safety. “To sit on the panel would mean nothing. It’s a stronger statement to say that we will not legitimize it.”

Edwards, meanwhile, hopes to move forward with plans to win more support for an El Toro airport.

He says he wants an aggressive program aimed at dispelling misinformation about an airport’s impact on South County. Edwards said he also wants to see aircraft embark on test takeoffs and landings to give residents accurate information about how much noise a commercial airport would create.

“Test flights are a good idea, and I think the sooner, the better,” Edwards said. “I think people are working on a lack of information.”

His city is seen as leading the pro-airport fight as a way to curb flights at John Wayne Airport.

Edwards said he regrets Hammond will not be part of the panel, adding that South County residents deserve to have an advocate in the process.

“If you’re not going to be at the table, you’re not going to have much of a say,” Edwards said.