Garcia to Head LAX Expansion Group
A former president of the Board of Airport Commissioners has been elected to a group that promotes the controversial expansion of Los Angeles International Airport, it was announced Monday.
Daniel Garcia was elected president of LAX 21, a nonprofit coalition of business, labor and community-based supporters of the LAX Master Plan--a document that is intended to guide the airport’s expansion from about 60 million passengers a year to nearly 100 million.
Garcia, who was ousted from the commission by Mayor Richard Riordan in July, was selected because he was instrumental in the formation of LAX 21, group officials said.
The group has collected 25,000 signatures for the expansion, which would provide 350,000 jobs and double the size of the airport by 2015. Estimates on the cost of expansion range from $8 billion to $12 billion, potentially making it one of the costliest public works projects in the nation.
Environmentalists and neighbors of the airport, led by Los Angeles City Councilwoman Ruth Galanter, say the proposal would increase traffic and pollution.
They support development of Palmdale Airport as an alternative.
More to Read
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
