Supervisors to Reconsider El Toro Plans

Orange County supervisors agreed for the first time Tuesday to consider something other than an international airport at the former El Toro Marine base, signaling a major break from years of previous airport planning.

“I believe it’s a milestone for this Board of Supervisors,” said Supervisor Tom Wilson, who is opposed to an airport. “It’s a small step for the county but a giant step for anti-airport groups.”

Since the passage last month of Measure F--the initiative that requires a two-thirds vote before airports and other projects can be approved--airport planning has come to a halt as a majority of supervisors refused to approve El Toro-related spending until a judge has ruled on the issue.

Tuesday’s action, approved on a 3-0 vote with one supervisor abstaining and one out of town, represents a significant shift in years of county planning; officials have spent millions of dollars trying to plant an international airport at El Toro.

While supervisors in no way have abandoned the idea of an airport, their vote Tuesday to hold a workshop on the issue May 3 indicates they are willing to entertain other alternatives for the land, which airport opponents have suggested could be turned into a mix of homes, businesses, classrooms, museums and open space, called the Millennium Plan.

Chairman Charles V. Smith said he wants to hear county staff present all options to allow the board to decide how best to move forward with the base.

Although Smith did not rule out an airport still being built at the site, he said his vote--along with that of Supervisors Wilson and Todd Spitzer--allows the military to continue the process of transferring the base to the county and to allow groups to use the land for recreational purposes.

At the May 3 workshop, supervisors will hear ideas for what to do with the base in the event that an airport cannot be built and what should eventually happen to the land. Supervisors are expected to hear a history of the project, their options both with or without an airport and timelines for both.

No decision is expected to be made at the workshop. Supervisors have said they expect to vote on how to proceed by June.

Spitzer, an airport opponent, said at the very least, “the workshop will elevate consideration of non-aviation uses before the board’s majority.”

The board made its decision after a lengthy discussion approving the payment of $182,500 in airport-related contracts, including payment for Michael L. Lapin, the manager for the airport planning process.

Supervisor Cynthia P. Coad, who pushed the workshop idea but abstained from voting because it was linked to payment of the contracts, said a hearing on the matter would give the board an opportunity to discuss the pros and cons of an airport after the passage of Measure F.

Coad expressed concern about how the county would pay for planning non-aviation uses and the need for the board to identify a source of funding such as the general fund.

Airport planning has always come from a pool of revenues generated from John Wayne Airport, but after the passage of Measure F county contracts were ordered suspended because they violate the measure’s funding restrictions for airport planning.

“I certainly have no intention to disobey any law,” Coad said. “I will abstain on voting until there is a court clarification on Measure F.”

Supervisor Jim Silva, who was out of town, was the only supervisor not at the meeting.

Under the terms of Lapin’s and other consultants’ contracts, the county is obligated to pay through June 30 regardless of whether they’re working or not, because the suspension came within 90 days of the contract expiration date.

The amounts sought include $42,501 for Lapin, manager for the proposed airport plan, and $50,000 for attorney Mark Mispagel, who is special counsel on El Toro issues. In addition, the county owes Hill & Knowlton $60,000 for public relations and lobbying services and Higgins, McGovern & Smith $30,000, also for public relations.

The board voted to pay and use the consultants with general fund dollars but only through the first week in May to allow County Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier an opportunity to confer with Lapin and others in preparation for the workshop.

During the discussion, Smith was adamantly opposed to simply paying off the consultants and bringing all airport planning to a halt.

“I can’t go along with stopping the process completely,” Smith said. “I feel we should complete the planning process [for an airport] because it would allow us to submit it to the voters for a vote.”

The county still must seek transfer of the shuttered base to the county and work on a master lease that will produce revenue while either an airport or other base use moves forward, Smith said.

Last week, supervisors said they won’t approve any El Toro spending until a judge rules on the validity of Measure F.

News of the board’s decision was greeted with mixed responses. While anti-airport groups applauded the workshop idea, pro-airport spokespersons said they thought the idea was a delaying tactic.

“It’s another plan to stall, delay and obfuscate the real issue on how we satisfy our aviation demand,” said David Ellis, a pro-airport spokesman.

But Meg Waters, a spokeswoman for a South County anti-airport coalition, said: “It’s good news. Maybe in the spirit of glasnost they could invite the anti-airport people to give input.”

Bruce Nestande of Citizens for Jobs and the Economy called the workshop a meaningless exercise, especially in view of the 1994 passage of Measure A, the county’s pro-airport initiative that rezoned the base for an airport and airport-related uses. An attempt two years later to rescind Measure A failed.

“The whole motion is somewhat without meaning in the sense that Measure A is still there and Measure F did not repeal Measure A, it simply modified the procedures for arriving at an airport decision. But the airport is still the preferred option.”