The Peninsula Community Planning Board (PCPB), whose October meeting was last week in Point Loma, a community near San Diego International Airport, approved a delegation of fifteen members to meet today with State Senator Christine Kehoe.
The San Diego Airport Examiner will be attending. Others in the delegation include 12 invited PCPB and community members, plus two other media representatives. Guests include Suhail Khalil, who chairs the Airport Committee, James Lester, Darrold Davis, Chris Veum, Jay Shumaker, and Paul Grimes, all five elected members serving on the Planning Board. Also on the guest list are City Councilman Kevin L. Faulconer, William Kenton who chairs the North Bay / Midway Community Planning Group, Chairperson Brittany Taylor of the Ocean Beach Planning Board, Tony D. Calabrese, President of the Point Loma Association, Raymond Volker, Headmaster of Warren Walker School, which lies under the flight path of aircraft departing from San Diego International Airport, and Matt Kalla, the President of the Peninsula Chamber of Commerce.
CAPTION: (ABOVE LEFT) California State Senator Christine Kehoe and Captain Chesley Sullenberger (Photo courtesy of Christine Kehoe)
Steve Schmidt, San Diego Union-Tribune reporter, Anthony Gentile, a reporter for the Peninsula Beacon News, and Joel Siegfried, the San Diego Airport Examiner round out the press coverage.
Related articles: A video proposing airport relocation and a Slide Show follow this article.
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Community Planning Board September meeting
Noise flap raises flak at San Diego Airport
Citizens worry about more future flights
Profile of Airport's Quieter Home Program
CAPTION: (ABOVE RIGHT) Board members of the Peninsula Community Planning Board (Original photo by Joel Siegfried)
Issues to be discussed are similar to those raised with Congresswoman Susan Davis, at a meeting in Ms. Davis' District Office on October 10, upon which we reported earlier. They cover a 13-point list of concerns that were developed last July at a town hall gathering. These include proposals to develop a 
new airport facility on a 2,600 acre location known as East Elliott, which is southeast of the Marine Corps Air Station at Miramar, approximately 30 miles from San Diego International Airport (SDIA). SDIA is situated on a much smaller 650 acre site, and is projected to reach operational saturation by 2030.
CAPTION: (LEFT) Left to Right, Suhail Kahlil, Congresswoman Susan Davis, Paul Grimes, Jay Shumaker (Original photo by Joel Siegfried)
Other issues involve community complaints over noise and air quality, increased flight traffic along departure vector 250-degrees in addition to the other FAA departure vectors at 275, 290, and 310-degrees, the placement of an intermodal transit center in the airport's present Terminal Development Program which is scheduled for completion in 2012, and land use comparability, which includes noise and safety issues. The Point Loma community has an estimated population of over 48,000 and contains the second largest military fuel depot in the United States, as well as numerous schools and commercial properties, but lacks a hospital with certified trauma facilities. Many feel this puts the area at risk in the event of an accident or natural disaster.
As Chairman Khalil stated during the Board's regular October meeting, "We voted on the 13 points in the
letter sent to Senator Kehoe. We want to address those specific points. It's all about mitigating our various concerns and issues."
Board member Doug Cohen spoke about the present airport becoming very efficient with the addition of ten new gates, and other improvements. He added, "We will have to focus on land use and environmental issues if we want a new or additional airport."
There was some heated discussion from persons in the audience, including Cynthia Conger and others, who were in favor of bringing additional community members to the meeting with Senator Kehoe. One person suggested a single coverage press pool, to open up two extra slots for others to attend. The Board voted 9-1 to approve the proposed delegation, with Gary Halbert being the lone dissenter. The San Diego Airport Examiner will report on the meeting with Senator Kehoe.
CAPTION: (ABOVE RIGHT) Cynthia Conger (Original photo by Joel Siegfried)
The next public meeting of the PCPB Airport Committee will take place on Friday, October 30 from Noon to 1:30 P.M. at 2835 Perry Road by Naval Training Center Landing.
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Presentation given to San Diego County Regional Airport Authority on April 31, 2006
Comments
Very thorough Joel. Great job as usual!
Thank you for mentioning our long-standing East Elliott proposal. I hope your readers do not misunderstand the concept and the timing of our work, which started in 1993, well before the current wars in the Middle East.
Suffice it to say, here, that a two-runway airport, paid for by Revenue Bonds not taxes, coupled with the private redevelopment of our waterfront downtown could lift our city out of financial difficulty.
I trust that we will be discussing "Temporary Paradise?" concepts and economic health and the creation of civic wealth and civic beauty in these pages for several months to come.
-Jay Shumaker
Are you going as part of the delegation or to cover it as a writer or both?
Thank you for mentioning our long-standing East Elliott proposal. I hope your readers do not misunderstand the concept and the timing of our work, which started in 1993, well before the current wars in the Middle East.
Suffice it to say, here, that a two-runway airport, paid for by Revenue Bonds not taxes, coupled with the private redevelopment of our waterfront downtown could lift our city out of financial difficulty.
I trust that we will be discussing "Temporary Paradise?" concepts and economic health and the creation of civic wealth and civic beauty in these pages for several months to come.
-Jay Shumaker
As past PCPB Chair, I'd mentioned the 'demographics' used by the Airport Authority, you & this 'delegation' are "mistakenly (on purpose?) quoted from the 1990 CENSUS!" Past Board Chairs had determined closer to 80,000 inhabiting the Peninsula, including 9 Public Schools of over 5,000 students K-12, at least 4 private K-12 schools & 2,000 Nazarene University students, plus staff & teachers. The military's 3-4 bases here have 15-20,000 civilian and military personnel at any time, in addition to the apprx. newer 1,000 housing units! You neglected to mention that the majority of 'delegates' 'approved' by the PCPB were mostly architects, builders or financiers. None were 'affected community members'& the Public School's reps were 'denied' attendance at this mostly 'business leader'meeting,' though they own at least 10 majorly-impacted, quite large parcels of land, while including persons who both live & own property 'off' the Peninsula. Who IS this 'community board' really 'representing?
keep us advised.
No one in the country covers their local airport better on an on-going basis than you do. No one.
Replying to Jay Shumaker, thank you for clarifying the starting date of your efforts to move San Diego International Airport to the then Naval Air Station and Top Gun school at Miramar, which is currently operated as a Marine Corps facility. The video presentation paints a visionary view of downtown redevelopment. I've been meaning to include a link to it for some time, but instead decided that actually embedding the video in an article appropriate to it's content, would be a better chance for readers to view it and decide the merits of this concept for themselves.
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.
Joel Siegfried
San Diego Airport Examiner
Replying to Billie, to clarify my status at this particular meeting, and at every every that I attend, I always cover these functions as a journalist, and do not represent any group or particular point of view. It was an honor to be included as there were a limited number of seats in the Senator's small conference room.
Thank you for asking your question.
Joel Siegfried
San Diego Airport Examiner
Replying to Cynthia C., I very much appreciate your update of the demographics data. Let me assure you that it was not an effort on my part to slant or minimize the facts. Rather, I was pressed by a deadline to publish and used figures mentioned in a Wikipedia article about Point Loma, as it was easily available. Your insights and knowledge are always welcome, as are your comments, whether or not they are critical or complimentary. Finally, any time you spot a typo, please let me know, as I seem to have a talent for missing them.
Thank you for taking the time to leave your remarks.
Joel Siegfried
San Diego Airport Examiner
Thank you for mentioning our long-standing East Elliott proposal. I hope your readers do not misunderstand the concept and the timing of our work, which started in 1993, well before the current wars in the Middle East.
Suffice it to say, here, that a two-runway airport, paid for by Revenue Bonds not taxes, coupled with the private redevelopment of our waterfront downtown could lift our city out of financial difficulty.
I trust that we will be discussing "Temporary Paradise?" concepts and economic health and the creation of civic wealth and civic beauty in these pages for several months to come.
-Jay Shumaker
Dear Joel,
I appreciate your coverage of the airport story and your deference to us "natives," as you admit to coming in late, so to speak. Your neutrality is understandable and consistent, so we can trust your journalism and I, for one, follow along diligently.
As a follower I notice that my early comment is copied a few times, probably each time I click onto a link in your story. This may lead your other readers to think that I must be a bit megalomaniacal.
But of course I think of myself as an altruistic and creative planner and cringe at any charge to the contrary. I may be redundant, true, ...but exactly repetitive? How creative would that be?
By now you've noticed the repetitions and must have an Internet tech on it?
-Jay S.
Joel,
One correction: We never suggested displacing "Top Gun" but rather it was their transfer to Fallon in November, 1993 by the DOD that got us thinking about how some intelligent shifts might create great opportunities here.
It makes me sad to witness the state of our local economy today, knowing that the original "Prop A" actually was approved by San Diego county voters in 1994, but that San Diego's city mayor at the time, fumbled.
Hers was a mistake of historic proportions, probably the most important fumble in our history.
The saddest aspect for me was that our mayor acted in the face of significant earlier planning commissioned by the Marston family, re. "Temporary Paradise?" published in 1974, and then against the energetic leadership of the San Diego International Airport Foundation.
Worse, our mayor acted against the electorate itself who knew instinctively that their little airport, at the extreme edge of the county, had no happy future.
How right they
...were.
-JS
After having lived near the SD airport, and flying into it once or twice- I believe you cover it the best! Unbiased and informative, and a job well done as always.
Joel:
An excellent and unbiased approach, per norm. Good job..
Cheers..
Regarding Jay Shumaker's concerns over duplicate comments, this has happened to others, and is not an indication of megalomania, repetitive thinking, or early onset of Alzheimer's disease.
The "send" button under the comment box is especially sensitive to over clicking, and there may be other issues involved as well that cause duplicate comments to appear.
I have the ability to delete a comment, but do not exercise that option because pending deletions are placed in a queue for eventual removal, and sometimes a different remark is accidentally removed. I also believe in freedom of speech and expression, and want to give everyone an opportunity to speak their views and share their opinions and insights.
Anytime you see a duplicate comment, please understand that it was left by accident or due to technological glitches, and does not reflect negatively on the person who made such postings.
Joel Siegfried
San Diego Airport Examiner
Way to go Joel. Great article, great coverage, and somehow you know I love that Harvest Festival slideshow ;>
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