"Imperial County site of new international airport?"

Wednesday, September 17, 2003

Imperial County site of new international airport?
By DARREN SIMON
The Imperial Valley (CA) Press


Imagine an airport the size of one to two small Imperial Valley cities that
would be an international passenger and cargo facility for San Diego and
Imperial counties.

Imagine that airport in Imperial County.

Impossible? Maybe not.

The San Diego County Regional Airport Authority board is exploring the
future of air travel in San Diego, and it has determined Lindbergh Field
near the city's downtown cannot meet the needs of the future.

Lindbergh Field is among the smallest major airports in the nation. With
that in mind, the airport authority launched the "air transportation action
program" and named a site selection advisory committee to look at sites for
an international airport.

How does Imperial County fit into that picture?

Initially, the committee produced a list of 30 possible sites. A site in
Imperial County — in the west desert south of Interstate 8 — was on that
list. Now the committee has narrowed its list to 16 sites and Imperial
County remains on it.

According to local attorney Orlando "Lanny" Foote, a leader in Imperial
County's airport issues, Imperial County may become the only viable choice.

He said among the 16 sites, six are active military bases that could not
serve as an airport unless the bases were closed, and the remaining sites
are in, for the most part, heavily populated areas. Those that are not, he
said, are in areas more remote than the Imperial Valley.

In fact, he said, based on criteria set by the site advisory committee, the
only three sites that could work for an international passenger and cargo
airport are in Tijuana, March Air Force Base in Riverside, now a reserve Air
Force facility, and Imperial County.

However, is Imperial County actually in the running for an airport to serve
San Diego?

Foote said cynics, including himself, say the only reason Imperial County is
on the list is as a ploy by those who want to see an international airport
in San Diego placed at one of two military installations, Marine Corps Air
Station Miramar or Naval Air Station North Island.

Foote said the idea of placing Imperial County on the list may be to show
what those in support of the military sites think are impractical locations.

However, Foote said, they may find Imperial County is not such a ridiculous
option. He said this county may become the only option.

"Despite the cynical approach that is being taken, I honestly believe they
are running out of options," Foote said, adding of such an airport in
Imperial County. "I may not live to see it, but I think I will."

The timing of the San Diego Regional Airport Authority's effort to find a
new airport site comes as Imperial County is dealing with its own airport
issues.

The Imperial County airport is landlocked by Highway 86 and the city of
Imperial. It cannot grow and cannot handle larger passenger or cargo
aircraft. The runway is too short and that hems in the county's ability to
use the airport to expand the local economy.

Foote said since the early 1990s Imperial County has known the airport must
be moved.

When the San Diego City Council pulled its support for an international
cargo airport, officials in this county launched an effort to attract a
major cargo airport here that would serve the needs of Southern California.
The idea of a cargo airport fit the need to move the Imperial County
airport.

>From that idea, officials expanded their vision to include not only a cargo
airport but an international airport.

In scope, the airport for Imperial County would consist of one 12,000-foot
runway along with a passenger terminal and other facilities for both cargo
and passenger needs.

Such an airport, Foote said, would be the size of a small Imperial County
city and would handle major airline traffic.

That's where San Diego comes into the picture.

Foote said with Imperial County on the list as a site for an international
airport to serve San Diego, the county could expand the scope of its airport
project from one 12,000-foot runway to two 12,000-foot runways that would be
5,000 feet apart. Such a facility would be roughly 3,000 acres, nearly twice
the size of Calipatria and Westmorland combined.

The two 12,000-foot runways are what are needed to replace Lindbergh Field
and that, Foote said, may be something the people of San Diego will not
support.

"San Diego does not want this massive facility," he said.

Foote said for San Diego to dismiss the idea of locating the airport here as
crazy would be shortsighted. He added people in the Valley who might view it
as nothing more than a pipe dream may find the reality is — as San Diego
runs out of options — that it is more than that.

Additionally, he said, the potential for economic growth through job
creation and business development makes such an idea worth exploring.

"We would go from dumps and jails to something affirmative in the region,"
he said.

Foote added it would be a project that would be 10 to 15 years into the
future and it would be funded through the Federal Aviation Administration,
which already has indicated Imperial County needs a new airport.

He acknowledged it could be an uphill battle to build support for such an
airport, but he said people need to be open to change in the county.

Foote also said while San Diego has explored a site for an airport in
Imperial County, that does not mean any local decisions have been made on
where to place an airport. There are a number of issues that must be
considered, such as the environmental impacts and the available air space,
particularly in relation to Naval Air Facility, El Centro.

There are other issues to be considered. A draft plan by the site advisory
committee points out problems with an Imperial County site. One of those
problems is the amount of work that would have to be done to research and
protect historic sites.

Regardless of whether Imperial County becomes the site of an international
passenger airport serving both San Diego and Imperial County, this area will
have a new airport, Foote said. He added if a local airport is built on
smaller scale, with just one 12,000-foot runway, it could be a reality in
less than 10 years.

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