Board Closer to Consensus on El Toro

County supervisors on Monday edged closer to agreeing on one of the four proposals for converting the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station into a commercial airport, but officials acknowledged that the plans probably will have to be modified in order to reach a final consensus.

The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to consider the four El Toro options at a meeting this morning and could select one as its “preferred alternative.”

Two of the three supervisors who support the airport--Charles V. Smith and William G. Steiner--said Monday that they might back Option C, which calls for an international airport that handles 24 million passengers yearly by 2020. The proposal includes an expensive people-mover system linking El Toro with John Wayne Airport.

Option C also won the backing Monday of an El Toro citizens advisory committee appointed by the Board of Supervisors.

But to become the county’s official plan, any proposal requires the approval of at least three supervisors.

Supervisors Tom Wilson and Todd Spitzer have opposed the airport and are likely to vote against any aviation plan.

That means that Smith, Steiner and Board Chairman Jim Silva must all agree on one plan. Silva, an airport backer, has yet to say which plan he prefers.

Option C is the smallest of the three international airport proposals. By contrast, Option B calls for 28.8 million passengers per year, while Option D envisions 33.5 million.

Option A would create an airport serving 19 million passengers and handle domestic flights almost exclusively.

On Friday, Steiner said he would only support an airport that handled 25 million passengers a year or fewer. He also questioned the viability of Option C, because of the $300-million cost of the people-mover system. As a result, Steiner said he was leaning toward the smallest proposed airport, Option A.

But on Monday, Steiner met with county officials and discussed Option C in depth. Afterward, Steiner said he would be willing to tentatively back the proposal, if county officials over the next few months provide him with more data that show the people-mover system can be built.

“If they can prove to me that it can work and be economically feasible, I can support it,” Steiner said. “It would provide for international service but still be reasonable for the surrounding community.”

He added he is still interested in Option A, but acknowledged that it is unlikely to win support from the rest of the board.

Indeed, Smith announced Monday that he was strongly opposed to Option A because it does not allow for international flights, except limited service to Canada and Mexico. The supervisor said he is leaning toward Option B--which would handle 28 million passengers annually--but is willing to consider Option C as well.

“I have concerns that the [people-mover] is too expensive, but I think it is going to take more study,” Smith said. “I don’t think we can rule it out at this point. It’s worth exploring further.”

Members of the El Toro advisory committee said Option C was attractive because of its moderate size and capacity for international flights.

“It’s critical for Orange County to offer international flights and compete in a global economy,” said member George L. Argyros, a local businessman who has become a driving force behind the airport push. “We are trying to keep our options open for the next 100 years.”

Added Newport Beach Mayor Thomas C. Edwards: “By taking this step, we are sending a signal that we are not just building anything that comes down the pike.”

The Board of Supervisors has until summer to select one of the four options as its “preferred alternative.” The county will then order detailed environmental impact reports on all four plans. The board would approve a final airport plan in fall 1999.

The process cannot move forward, however, until at least three board members agree on one recommendation.

County Chief Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier expressed confidence Monday that the board will form a consensus by summer, but admitted that the plan might have to be modified.

“A final plan could look like a combination of the options we have outlined,” she said. “I expect there will be some tweaking that goes on.”

County officials are seeking comments on the plans not only from supervisors but also from the airline industry, local businesses and residents.

“If we can’t reach a consensus on this, we might just have to continue the planning process,” Smith said. “We might see some combination of these plans.”

Under Option C, planners envision the two facilities working essentially as one airport, with John Wayne handling all short-haul traffic, such as shuttles to the Bay Area, and El Toro handling all long-distance domestic and international passenger flights, plus cargo service.

Mittermeier said Monday that some sort of rail link between the two airports is needed so that passengers and luggage can move quickly from short-haul flights at John Wayne to longer-range flights at El Toro, and vice versa.

The airports are about seven miles apart.

By 2020, the El Toro airport would handle an average of 254 daily departures and arrivals under Option C.

This is the only plan calling for an increase in the passenger capacity at John Wayne--from the current level of 7.7 million per year to 9.5 million.

Such an increase would cause controversy in Newport Beach, which has a court-approved agreement with the county capping the capacity of John Wayne at 8.5 million passengers per year.