Riordan Changes Stance on El Toro

Shifting his position in one of Orange County’s most contentious political debates, former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, an all-but announced candidate for governor, said Monday he no longer believes an airport needs to be built at the closed El Toro Marine base.

“There has to be a solution to air travel 20 years from now,” Riordan said in an interview Monday. “But this does not necessarily involve El Toro.”

An airport in the Inland Empire could also do the job, Riordan said.

“Orange County has to expand its capacity,” Riordan said. “But it has got to decide itself where it wants to go. It has got to be a local decision.”

Riordan made his comments after a meeting of Orange County business and civic leaders, who make up one of the state’s most reliable Republican constituencies. That appearance came on the heels of the state’s Republican convention, a gathering dominated by questions over whether Riordan is too liberal to lead his party in a race against Gov. Gray Davis.

In Orange County, Riordan’s change of position on the El Toro airport--as mayor, Riordan had supported development of that base as a commercial airfield--was enough to convince Supervisor Todd Spitzer that Riordan should be the party’s nominee against Davis.

Spitzer announced Monday that he is endorsing Riordan as “the only candidate who has the vision to bring California together.”

Spitzer said he came to this conclusion after the two had a private meeting a few weeks ago in which Riordan said he was not committed to seeing an airport built at the controversial former Marine base.

In the past, Riordan has called for an airport at El Toro, but the former mayor said Monday his position had changed over time after he learned there were other options for expanding the region’s capacity.

“I have never changed the main position, which is they need expansion to service Orange County,” he said.

In his appearance before Orange County business and opinion leaders, the former mayor also talked of God and freeway gridlock, Republicanism and compromise.

The sympathetic crowd at the Hilton Costa Mesa, during a luncheon hosted by the Orange County Public Affairs Assn. and the Orange County Business Council, chuckled and pledged to keep an open mind about the politician many have castigated for aligning himself with Democrats.

Many of the 100 or so who came to hear Riordan speak Monday said they were eager to get to know the former Los Angeles mayor better before deciding whether to back him.

“It’s too early to tell,” said Owen Holmes, a lobbyist for Cal State Fullerton, on the subject of whether Riordan would be good for Orange County.

“I know what I don’t want to hear,” Holmes added.

“I don’t want to hear that Orange County is written off because its [inevitably going to vote Republican].”