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HomeMy WebLinkAboutRPT 3 AIRPORT STATUS 03-18-91r a r' )ATE: MARCH 18, 1991 TO: WILLIAM A. HUSTON, CITY MANAGER FROM: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT SUBJECT: AIRPORT STATUS REPORT - FEBRUARY MEETINGS RECOMMENDATION Receive and file. DISCUSSION REPORTS NO. 3 3-18-91' " Inter - Com During the first two months of 1991, the Community Development Department has continued to monitor and actively participate in airport meetings. In the three months since the last Airport Status Report to the City Council on December 17, 1990, meetings of the Airport Land Use Commission, Coalition for a Responsible Airport Solution and Noise Abatement Committee have taken place. Staff has summarized the main issues discussed at the meetings. Airport Land Use Commission (ALUC) - On January 10, 1991, Councilmember Pontious was appointed to the Airport Land Use Commission by a selection committee of Orange County mayors. At the February 14, 1991, ALUC meeting, the City of Tustin was identified as an inconsistent agency. As directed by the City Council, the Community Development Department is working with the consultants who are preparing the General Plan update to rectify this inconsistency. Noise Abatement Committee - Staff attended the quarterly Noise Abatement Forum meeting on February 27, 1991. While the issues discussed at the meeting do not directly concern the City of Tustin, the main item of general aviation departure patterns provided useful information. Such aircraft, for example, are not subject to curfews as are commercial aircraft, but only to noise level maximums that limit their operations. The departure patterns, however, do not cross above the City of Tustin. Coalition for a Responsible Airport Solution (CRAS) - Kathy Weil, our City representative for ORAS, attended the group's most recent meeting on February 28, 1991. A copy of her report on that meeting is attached. Airport Status Report - February Meetings March 18, 1991 Page 2 CONCLUSION The issues discussed at these three meetings are of considerable importance to the City of Tustin. Unless otherwise directed by Council, the Community Development Department will continue to monitor airport issues. 4:Ri a Westfie d Christine Shinglet n Assistant Director of Assistant City Marfader Community Development Attachments: Memo from Kathy Weil SR:kd\airport.mem MEMO TO: TUSTIN CITY COUNCIL FROM: KATHY WEIL RE: UPDATE ON CRAS DATE: MARCH 4, 1991 The old saying "It Ain't Over 'Til Its Over" probably applies to the ever -going saga of the attempt to commer- cialize El -Toro. Though things have been very quiet since the first of the year (meaning that Ken Delino has run into some resistance), there's a lot going on behind the scenes that might play an important role in the future of El Toro. Ken is still trying to play "divide and conquer" pitting San Clemente (Christianitos Canyon site) against the El Toro site. CRAS on the other hand is working with many south county communities, including San Clemente, to discredit Ken's efforts. By supporting their fight to keep the airport out of Christianitos, which has just as many problems as El Toro, CRAS hopes to solidify the opposition to a new airport site in central and south county. As a plus for our side the Feds are getting tired of funding studies for airport sites in this whole area, so the whole subject may be at least dormant for a while. On the other hand the results of an investigation by the GAO (U'S. General Accounting Office), ordered by Sen. Wendell Ford of Kentucky last July, is due momentarily. This study was to determine the feasibility of using El Toro jointly with UPS and Federal Express for afternoon and evening cargo flights. I'll keep you posted on this. The enclosed articles contain information that may have an even greater impact on our efforts to relieve our air transportation problems. The article about the delay in Bechtel's ability to build a high speed Mag-lev for at least 5 years is not good news and that article was written before Bechtel was chosen to reconstruct Kuwait. Guess where the Mag-lev is on their priority list. The second article comes from Bangor, the former home of Peter D'Errico, the military to civilian airport conversion guru. I mentioned him to you in an earlier report. You'll notice that Peter is working for the Victor Valley Economic Development Council, that is in favor of the smaller regional airport concept. This information is far more important in light of the first article about Bechtel. It supports the idea of ignoring Orange County and its passengers (and problems), because getting them to the High Desert Airport will be a problem in the near future. Instead it appears to me that Victorville will try and compete with Orange County for its business. It may yet solve our air transportation problem, but it may also kill our economy. Not a very good scenario. CRAS' Annual Meeting will be held on April 18, 1991 at 6:30PM at the Administration Building in Leisure World. The subject is "The Future of Air and Ground Transportation in Orange County". Hope you can attend. C.R.A.S [Coalition for Responsible Airport Solution] ANNUAL MEM ure of MEETING ir round Transportation in Orange County" April 18,1991 6:3 0 P.M. Leisure World Administrative Building 23522 Paseo de Valencia Laguna Hills By Cheryl Downey The Orange County Register LAS VEGAS — Plans for a super - speed train linking Anaheim and Las Vegas came to a screeching it halt Friday when a bistate com- mission learned that no concrete steps to build or design the train can be taken for more than five years. "If you're asking me what day we'll start construction, I can't tell you," said Tom Marlow, the proj- ect's manager for Bechtel Corp., which was picked to finance, de- sign, build and operate the 300 -mph train. At a meeting here Friday, he told the California -Nevada Super Speed Train Commission that Bechtel could do none of those things for at least five years, until after a proj- ect elsewhere in the nation proves the magnetic -levitation technology works safely. Prospects for privately financ- ing the $5 billion train also look grim. Marlow said bankers are not interested and Bechtel's financial partner — C. Itoli of Japan — has not yet committed to the project. The commission had hoped to . have the 270 -mile train built and., operating as early. as 1997. Mar - low's news pushed that back until well after the year 2000. The train's problems are remi- niscent of those that faced the "bul- let train" that was to link San Die- go, Orange County and Los Ange- les, using a high-speed steel -wheel train. That project died in the early 1980s after the train ran into so many problems that financing be-. came impossible. Marlow tried to reassure angry and frustrated commissioners. "This is a real project. We have - moved from hope to reality and that means we face some prob- lems," Marlow said. "We believe in this train." Some commissioners .,suggested that they should look for other com- panies to build the train.. But the i commission -decided to !.wait until its May 6 meeting in'.Anaheim be- fore taking - any action. At that . point, it will . consider signing a. preliminary. agreement ' with Bechtel., "We ought to take it slow," urged Orange County Supervisor Don ; Roth, chairman of the commission. Marlow didn't give the commis.-.., sion much choice. World economic conditions, war in the Persian Gulf and a US reces - sion mean no private money is available for a $5 billion project:4 using untried magnetic -levitation! - technology, he said. Prospective backers also told-► Bechtel that they would not bank=' roll a project that had no clear' right of way, no assurance that fares won't be regulated -and no safety clearance from US officials: `. "They told us to stick- it in our,, ear," Marlow said. "Maybe we ought to reach the-; same conclusion," responded A�:, . semblyman Richard Katz, D-Pan,.W orama City, a commission mem ber. ' Marlow said the Anaheim -Las* Vegas project , would remain,; stalled until a 14 -mile demonstra- tion project in Orlando, Fla., has'` proved the technology works. If: that project goes forward this year, it would not be in operation'! until 1995 or 1996, he said. The superspeed traio.would take.-. five to eight years. to plan and cont- - struct after that, Marlow said. He asked the' commission to spend the next two years clearing up legislative and regulatory, ig sues but said Bechtel would not de sign or work on environmental:11 clearance for a project it might noir be able to build: 'f "Ydu would like this comrnissiort to clear all your.roadblocks out of, the way,",. Katz said. "And after' .that is done,:'then you will decide whether ,or- not. you're - going to _ play. There's no commitment even, after we do all that that you're go= ing to build a train.".. Several commission members including Katz — suggested that. Bechtel build a demonstration.. project using some part of the Ana- heim -Las Vegas route. But Marlow said US rail officials: will allow just one demonstration. project to test the technology's - safety and the Florida project has a head start. - Bangor Daily News, Fri ay, Dec R '...'Former airpo manaqer joas pg- By Ned Porter Of the NEWS Staff Christmas season in the high desert of Cali- fornia — 60 degree days, and sunny I ooks pretty good to the man who spent the previous 20 winters readying Bangor Inter- national Airport for the onslaught sleet, snow, and ice..- cerTen Tenweeks ago Peter D'Errico left his post as airport manager which he had held since February 1970 for a fresh challenge and finan- tial security. He will serve athree-year stint "F at • the helm of the Victor Valley Economic r:. ;><>: t . Development Authority to oversee the region- >: ` �``' al reuse of George Air Force Base.> "It's really fine, very challenging," D'Er- rico said Wednesday in a telephone interview '> from his temporary office in the offices of an< San Bernardino County supervisor. "It's a wonderful resource we have to work>>. with here," he said. The base, about 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles, was one of the mayor facilities on the r. . list of those that in 1988 the Defense Secre- r tary's Commission of Base Realignment and, �A Closure recommended be decomissioned. >. The Air Force has slated the base for closing i6.. by December 1992. D'Errico stepped into the middle of a contro- i versy when he moved west. Two entities, the ? . VVEDA, a regional consortium, and the town peter D'Errico of Adelanto, nearest the base, are battling over who has jurisdiction. - � � " � � � Thee £ VVEDA has received initial inquiries .from The plan is, D'Errico said, to encourage �`-� �� �- manufacturers businesses institutions and companies in the health-care industry. ' + Adelanto into the fold to work as a .unified grouPh Much of what he learned during20 ears at In the meantime, each is taking a different BIA can be applied to the reuse of George PP Air approach to the reuse of the facility. Adelanto Force Base.. "In Bangor I had more to do with wants to develop a super airport connected to,, airport operations, which will come here even - the Los Angeles area by high-speed rail, all -of tually,':' D'Errico said. "It's more of a plan - which will help relieve congestion at airports ring and development thing for the present." in and around the city. The ties that bind are stretched pretty thin "VVEDA is taking a slower approach,"' across the 3,000 miles between Bangor and . D'Errico said. "Our reuse plan is more of a Victorville. But, D'Errico said that he and his phased, stair -step plan that moves as market, wife are settling into their new home. And he.. forces dictate. looks forward to not worrying about snow, The local market could support some level either on the driveway, at home or the runway. of scheduled air service initially," he said.`-: at work., ,,..,"The question is where do we go from there.." "I can't believe the weather," he said. "Last d Even during the early phases of the transi- Sunday we took a 40 -minute drive in the San tion, D'Errico said that interest in the poten- .. Bernardino Mountains. It was beautifully sun - tial of the base is high among the non-military ny and warm. And we had lunch outdoors — sectors of the economy.. outdoors in December, it was fantastic."