A Tale of Two Bases

For decades, two local Marine air bases were symbols of American military strength, and their presence set a tone for the brand of conservatism that informed civilian life in the sprouting suburbs of Orange County. Now, in their shuttered condition, they have become case studies of a different order as part of the nation’s sweeping experiment with base closures.

The task of recycling military bases for civilian use ought to be straightforward enough. The Department of Defense’s Community Guide to Base reuse says, in effect: Identify a plan for the community benefit, make sure those with a stake are part of the program and clean up the environmental mess. But frustrations with base reuse plans at the Tustin Marine Corps Air Station and the more contentious El Toro Marine Corps Air Station illustrate that base conversion in practice can be something different. The flow charts for how returning bases to community use is supposed to work might not flow. In the case of El Toro, the problem still lies in the formulation of a basic plan. In the case of Tustin, it rests in efforts to achieve implementation once a plan has been identified and agreed upon. In both instances, federal attention is urgently needed to sort things out at two distinct stages.

To describe the El Toro reuse process as being in the formative phase as late in the game as 2000 requires a word of explanation. It is not that the process is just beginning; rather it’s that all the meaningful debate has centered on only one potential use, the big international airport favored by a handful of developers and by a majority of three on the Board of Supervisors.

The passage in 1994 of Measure A, advertised disingenuously as a guarantor that a commercial airport would get a fair hearing, ended up driving the entire discussion until now. That slim margin of a countywide vote was interpreted at the Hall of Administration as a mandate to go forward with the big airport. To ensure that happened, local communities were peeled off from the Local Redevelopment Authority, and the fundamental spirit of formulating a base reuse plan was violated.

This has created a virtual civil war within Orange County that to this day stands unresolved. The passage this year of Measure F, the initiative that requires two-thirds voter approval for airports and other big infrastructure projects, and which was promoted by anti-airport forces, effectively has returned the process to square one. The courts still must rule on the initiative’s constitutionality, but after a lot of time, money and contention, the county has focused on one idea and now has lost the battle for the hearts and minds of the citizenry. It also has done some significant groundwork through the efforts of the El Toro Reuse Planning Authority and the city of Irvine on another proposal, the nonaviation Millennium Plan.

El Toro planning needs a reconfiguration that goes well beyond the recent appointment of Rob Richardson, the county’s director of public affairs and former Santa Ana City Council member, as interim executive director of the new local redevelopment authority. When Richardson was appointed on July 20, much was made of his willingness to work with different groups, including supporters and critics of the airport. Such openness is welcome, and gives evidence of improving the climate of discussion. However, the unwavering commitment of the board majority to a big airport suggests that only a planning reconfiguration that treats El Toro planning as if it needs fundamental restructuring is likely to move the process forward significantly. This means reconstituting the Local Redevelopment Authority to be more representative. The federal government, with an assist from the congressional delegation, needs to make that happen as a way of affirming the true spirit and processes of federal base reuse planning.

Tustin is much further along, but it too has been experiencing delay. The Navy says it really isn’t stonewalling, just studying the plans, but it needs to get beyond study to action. Already, the Orange County Rescue Mission has moved on site to provide housing for the homeless.

The other housing possibilities for the base must be brought along because the county has such an affordable housing shortage. One area that requires attention is the bid by Santa Ana Unified School district to get a corner of the base for educational purposes. With education plans for two other nearby school districts and a community college district in place, Santa Ana has a strong case to get in on the action.

This tale of two bases is about overcoming obstacles to move the process along. In the case of El Toro, the federal government must insist on a more representative authority to design a plan that can win community acceptance. In the case of Tustin, some modification may be needed, but in general the community’s plan needs to be implemented.