"Riverside, Calif.-Area Airports Get Touted"

Friday, August 8, 2003

Riverside, Calif.-Area Airports Get Touted
The Riverside (CA) Press-Enterprise


Inland economic advocates who hope to foster growth at area airports will
spend today shuttling influential decision-makers around the region's five
facilities.

Inland Empire Airport Day is designed to show elected officials in charge of
planning for Southern California that the Inland area has plenty of room to
expand, both in terms of passengers and air cargo.

The Inland Empire Economic Partnership will fly more than 30 policy-makers,
most of whom live in Los Angeles and Orange counties, around airports in
Ontario, Victorville, San Bernardino, Palm Springs and Moreno Valley.

Many of the invitees are members of an aviation task force that advises the
Southern California Association of Governments on how much air traffic the
region can expect in the coming decades. The agency recommends which
airports should carry some of the load and be funded at corresponding
levels.

"We want to make sure they know about the Inland Empire, because we want the
area at the forefront," said Teri Ooms, CEO/president of the partnership.
"We have capacity for both cargo and passengers -- now."

The idea behind the tour is that showing is better than just telling. One
message is that there is an alternative to forcing even more development
into already-crowded Los Angeles International Airport.

"It doesn't cost anything to put that capacity here, vs. spending millions
to expand LAX," Ooms said. "Everybody is complaining about airport capacity,
and it's right here."

The association of governments will soon begin updating its regional
transportation plan, which includes an airport component. That plan, Ooms
said, determines which airports are going to be players in the regional
airport system "and where the money goes."

The tour begins and ends at Ontario International Airport. Charter service
will deliver the group to different airports, and each facility will have
about an hour to show the group around.

Phil Rizzo, a key player in the development of the March Inland Port in
Moreno Valley, said he hopes the trip demonstrates just how much the Inland
area has to offer.

"We talk about our airport, but this is a first-hand look at the
possibilities," he said. "They will be able to see the airports up close and
personal."


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