Supervisors Bring Back El Toro Project Veteran to Manage Airport Effort

A consultant working on the $10-billion Los Angeles International Airport expansion project was chosen Thursday by Orange County supervisors to lead the effort to build a new airport at the retired El Toro Marine base.

Gary Simon had been manager of the El Toro real estate program until last year when his contract was terminated by then-County Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier. He had clashed with Mittermeier over her handling of El Toro.

Simon, 43, will be paid $175,000 a year, only $10,000 less than County Executive Officer Michael Schumacher. Simon will report directly to board Chairwoman Cynthia P. Coad--a change made last year by supervisors unhappy with Mittermeier’s handling of the El Toro project, which is running more than two years behind schedule.

He was chosen to direct the airport project after supervisors hastily met in a closed-door meeting Thursday. The board interviewed four prospects for the job last week, including Simon and Stan Oftelie, executive director of the Orange County Business Council.

Simon’s selection was greeted warmly by both airport supporters and opponents, who believe he will prove flexible if the airport project is ultimately derailed. The proposed airport, which would serve up to 28.8 million passengers a year by 2020, has sharply divided residents and remains the county’s most vexing land-use issue.

Simon pledged to work with all supervisors, including the minority of two who oppose an airport.

“I’m a proponent of honest communications with all the citizens . . . whether they support the [county’s] reuse plan or not,” said Simon, who lives in Huntington Beach with his wife and children.

Simon said he will conduct a “top-to-bottom” assessment of the entire project. Coad said she wants Simon to add more community programs at El Toro to increase revenue and to urge Navy officials to quickly transfer the military property to the county.

Supervisors said they were impressed with Simon’s resume, which includes serving as a senior executive for Walt Disney Imagineering, where he managed the $115-million renovation of Edison Field in Anaheim and the $200-million Disney All-Star Resort in Orlando, Fla..

“The people who are against the airport and those for an airport can see the value of Gary’s expertise,” Coad said.

Though Simon’s hiring was unanimous, he wasn’t always the favored candidate. Last month, Oftelie was considered the leading contender among the board’s pro-airport majority. But politics may have intervened. A Democrat, Oftelie’s candidacy was opposed by the county’s Republican Party leadership and he failed to earn the needed votes from supervisors in two closed-door meetings.

Supervisor Todd Spitzer, an airport opponent, said he considered it “a big win for South County” that Oftelie didn’t get the job. South County residents overwhelmingly oppose the airport plan.

“The inside candidate of the pro-airport forces was probably the most able person in this county to build an airport at El Toro. There’s no doubt he would have been successful,” Spitzer said.

Supervisor Tom Wilson, the board’s other airport foe, said he voted for Simon because he found him fair-minded and flexible enough to change course on El Toro.

A nine-city coalition fighting the airport said they were satisfied with Simon’s selection. One of the reasons Simon clashed with Mittermeier is because he wanted more non-aviation economic activity at the base, while Mittermeier was focused solely on promoting the airport.

Simon replaces interim El Toro director Rob Richardson, who will be Simon’s assistant through April 20.