Burbank Voters to Decide Final Authority for Airport Expansion

Burbank voters in the Nov. 7 election will decide whether they should be given direct authority over expansion plans for the Burbank Airport.

If Measure B is passed, a majority of Burbank voters will have to ratify all council decisions regarding a new airport terminal. If it is defeated, the council will continue deciding all airport matters.

Passage of the measure could further complicate plans to build a new Burbank Airport terminal by giving Burbank voters the power to veto the project.

Airport officials have been seeking to build a new terminal for two decades to accommodate growing passenger demand. The current terminal also is too close to the airport’s east-west runway under modern standards.

Many Burbank residents, however, say they fear that a new, modern terminal will make it possible for a dramatic increase in the number of flights--and in jet noise and auto traffic--to their neighborhoods.

The council in May agreed to put Measure B on the ballot after the city turned down a much more restrictive voter initiative proposed by the group Restore Our Airport Rights.

The proposal--which the group’s leaders have pledged to resubmit for the April ballot--would have imposed a mandatory 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew on all flights into and out of the airport, and a 10% cap on future flights and passengers.