Price Is Too High for Airport at El Toro

Re “Foes of an Airport at El Toro Have Their NIMBY Blinders On,” Commentary, June 4: It is not surprising to see Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Huntington Beach) compose an emotional column trashing the “Great Park” plan. To insinuate that those opposed to El Toro are an unholy alliance is defaming on the surface. The situation of pro-airport forces produces desperate measures, apparently.

Rohrabacher fails to discuss the true costs and effects of turning El Toro into a real commercial airport, in terms of money, pollution, traffic and constant noise. Then, too, there is the cost of lobbying airlines to fly to and from an unsafe and unpopular El Toro when there are abundant underutilized airports less than an hour from anywhere in Orange County.

I wonder if Rohrabacher would argue at all if he lived in and represented Lake Forest or Irvine rather than Huntington Beach. He has again demonstrated that he is blinded by pro-airport special interests. Since El Toro is not in his Huntington Beach backyard, he apparently believes NIMBY only applies to others.

Derek Quinn

Laguna Niguel

I agree with Rohrabacher’s comments. My neighbors in Irvine and elsewhere in South County are just plain selfish when it comes to the El Toro airport. All of us have to bear some burden for decent air transportation.

David Clark

Irvine

There are only four people with blinders on: Rohrabacher and the three blind mice on the Board of Supervisors. As for the unholy alliance, I would like to remind Rohrabacher that in the end, God always wins. The debate about who will pay for the Great Park, I leave to [Rohrabacher] to challenge our great Rep. Darrell Issa to decide. It’s called private fund-raising, and it’s the way we are going to stop this unholy alliance.

Ken D’Itri

Laguna Niguel