AV faces uphill airport battle

Master plan has no future for Palmdale

That was the message delivered by Larry Grooms, editor in chief of the Antelope Valley Press, at a luncheon meeting of the Palmdale Regional Airport Advisory Council Thursday.

The more than 17,000 acres of land owned by the city of Los Angeles is the greatest underdeveloped asset in the Antelope Valley, Grooms said. The best thing for the local economy, which is still rebounding from massive cuts in aerospace jobs, would be the opening of a major airport.

"That would bring more jobs than any economic development effort we've ever undertaken," he said.

Yet the draft master plan being circulated for future airport development in Los Angeles County shows no major role for Palmdale in the next 25 years.

"There is only one plan, and if we're not in it, we're out of it for the next 30 years."

Grooms said if Antelope Valley residents want the Palmdale Airport developed, they will have to fight for it.

"It's not going to be a gift," he said.

Grooms told a group of more than 25 people gathered at the Palmdale Holiday Inn that the newspaper has written more than 600 editorials on the planned development of a Palmdale International Airport, all in favor of the work.

This year alone, the Valley Press has published 27 editorials supporting development of the airport, he said.

Los Angeles World Airports bought more than 17,000 acres of land east of Air Force Plant 42 in the 1960s with the intention of building a new international airport to relieve pressure on Los Angeles International Airport. Both properties are owned by the city of Los Angeles.

Palmdale International was never built.

Los Angeles World Airports does have an agreement with Air Force Plant 42, which allows it 50 flights per day. Currently, there are none.

Grooms said trying to cover the story of the planned Palmdale international is like trying "to give Shamu a hug."

Too many agencies and officials with an interest in airport development know too little about each other, he said.

Chief among his concerns in the battle of what may or may not happen in Palmdale is what he calls the "vague" document Los Angeles World Airports is circulating as a draft master plan for the future of its largest airport, Los Angeles International.

World Airports announced last year it would have a master plan, and longtime Antelope Valley residents figured Palmdale would play a major role in such a document.

Instead, Palmdale receives only brief mention, little more than admitting it exists, Grooms said.

The city of Palmdale's position on airport development has been so ambiguous that it has been difficult for other agencies to grasp whether the city supports development of an airport, Grooms said.

Other cities in close proximity to LAX can offer alliance with Palmdale. Many of the localities near LAX don't want further development of an already crowded facility.

Grooms said he had no objection to more development at LAX, but that Palmdale offers a viable alternative for 3 million people who reside in areas as close to the Antelope Valley as they do to greater Los Angeles.