AT ISSUE: Measure F, on Tuesday's ballot, which is aimed at derailing the
county's El Toro airport plans.
Should the people of South County not share in the need for expanded air
transportation -- a need brought on by the growth of South County? The
cities of Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, Orange, Santa Ana,
Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley, Orange and yes, Irvine, will be
subjected to the new environmental impact report, Plan F or G, dated
December 1999.
Plan F, the least invasive, will subject those within a five-mile radius
of John Wayne to triple the noise and pollution. There are 180 or more
schools, child-care or children's facilities within a five-mile radius of
John Wayne. Are our children less precious than the children of South
County? The closest home to El Toro is six miles, and El Toro has a
14,000-acre buffer zone, while John Wayne has none. South County, we
under the flight path need your cooperation, not your constant barrage of
opposition.
JOHN DI BELLO
Newport Beach
I believe that the perfect solution to end the El Toro debate is that if
Measure F is passed and El Toro airport is not built, the county shall
restrict the use of John Wayne Airport to those that live in the areas
north and west of the city of Irvine.
This proposal would include the requirement to show proof of residence in
order to purchase a ticket for departing flights from John Wayne. The
400,000-plus residents of South County would have to make other
arrangements such as LAX, Ontario or San Diego for their travel plans.
This plan would help alleviate the pressure to expand John Wayne, as
those who chose not to have an airport in their own backyard will not be
able to travel from a convenient location. It is very sad to me that
anyone would want to squander such a golden opportunity to have a
facility as convenient and safe as El Toro would be.
JEFFREY W. WILCOX
Newport Beach
As a resident of Newport Beach who lives under the flight path of John
Wayne Airport, I can surely empathize with South County residents.
However, Orange County is rapidly expanding and will continue to do so.
As the county grows, more people will need to travel for business and
want to travel for pleasure, and more cargo will have to find its way
into the county. Any notion that this county will not have to expand its
airport capacity in the next 20 years is shortsighted. The El Toro
Airport plan goes a long way toward solving some of these problems at far
less of a social cost than any expansion of John Wayne Airport.
