"Air Force Blocks Civilian Airport"

Tuesday, January 16, 2001

Air Force Blocks Civilian Airport


WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Air Force has rejected a proposal for a civilian
commercial airport at Homestead Air Force Base near the Florida Everglades,
a major victory for environmentalists.

Instead, the Air Force, saying it seeks a balance between environmental
protection and development, said it would turn the base over to Miami-Dade
County for ``mixed use'' if the county wants to develop it.

The decision marks a sharp reversal from the government's original
intentions in 1994, after the air base was largely destroyed by Hurricane
Andrew, to use it as a civilian commercial airport.

In making the decision, the Air Force said ``special circumstances'' exist
regarding Homestead, including its closeness to two national parks that
already are ``under assault from urbanization and other pressures.''

It is 10 miles from Everglades National Park and also near the Big Cypress
National Preserve.

``This is an acceptable conclusion,'' said Bradford Sewell, an attorney for
the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group. But he
cautioned environmentalists ``will have to remain vigilant. We don't know
what Miami-Dade County will want to do.''

Any transfer, however, expressly forbids development of an airport. The Air
Force will retain the runway and taxiways, but the remaining 717 acres of
surplus land will be available for mixed economic uses that could include
commercial development as well as residential or recreational uses.

The county has 90 days to decide whether to accept the air base under those
conditions. If it does not, the facility will be turned over to the Interior
Department, according to the decision.

A number of interests, including Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelaz, had
strongly lobbied for a commercial airport at the site, prompting outcries
from both local and national environmental groups. The environmentalists
argued such an airport would threaten the Everglades.

The issue became entangled in the presidential race when environmentalists
in Florida criticized Vice President Al Gore for not coming out against a
commercial airport. Some environmentalists supported Green Party candidate
Ralph Nader because of the dispute. Gore narrowly lost Florida and thus the
election.

Assistant Air Force Secretary Ruby B. DeMesme called the Homestead case ``by
far the most contentious reuse decision the Air Force has faced in more than
30 base closures and realignments.''

The decision reflects ``a balance that seeks to accommodate, but will not
fully satisfy, all interests,'' DeMesme wrote in the record of decision
completed late Monday and made public Tuesday.

DeMesme noted that the decision was a reversal of one made in 1994 when the
Pentagon decided to close the base after assessing the damage from Hurricane
Andrew the year before.

``Over time, it became clear that a commercial airport is not the only way
of achieving the desired economic development of southern Miami-Dade
County,'' DeMesme wrote. ``The choice is no longer simply between an airport
and economic stagnation.''

Development of a commercial airport had been opposed by several key members
of the Clinton administration.

Such an airport ``will surely degrade both national parks'' nearby, Interior
Secretary Bruce Babbitt argued. Carol Browner, head of the Environmental
Protection Agency, also has said a commercial airport belongs elsewhere.

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http://www.californiaaviation.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?conf=DCConfID8

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