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Councilmembers Uranga, Price, Supernaw Seek Study Session On Airport Customs Facility / Int'l Flights Before Council Voted Action


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(November 28, 2016, 10:50 p.m.) -- Councilman Roberto Uranga, joined by Councilmembers Daryl Supernaw and Suzie Price, have agendized an item for the December 6, 2016 City Council meeting that asks city management to prepare a study session, apparently for the December 13 Council meeting, regarding a JetBlue-requested Federal Inspection Facility (FIS) [customs facility] at LB Airport to enable the City Council "as a whole, to hear community input and to receive additional clarification from staff before the matter is voted on by the City Council."

[Scroll down for further.]


If allowed by a Council majority, a customs facility couldn't be limited to JetBlue but would effectively allow multiple international passenger and cargo operators to use LB Airport (currently unavailable to them.) Under LB's protective Airport ordinance, all flight slots are currently filled for commercial aircraft over 75,000 pounds...leading to concerns from some residents (and former Airport Advisory Commission member/City Prosecutor Doug Haubert) that enabling international operations could invite a challenge to LB's Airport ordinance, which currently protects the City from unlimited numbers of flights at all hours on all runways.

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On Oct. 4, the City released a Feasibility Study prepared by an Airport-hired consulting firm (Jacobs) and a separately prepared memo from the City Attorney's office on legal issues regarding LB's Airport ordinance (LBREPORT.com coverage here.. City management indicated the two items were tentatively scheduled to come to the City Council (for exactly what Council action(s) was left unclear) on November 15...but at the Nov. 15 Council meeting, Mayor Robert Garcia announced without explanation that the two items would come to the Council -- again for actions(s) left publicly unclear -- on December 13.

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In August, Councilman Daryl Supernaw brought an agenda item (to allow at least 15 days for public review of the then-forthcoming Feasibility Study before it's sent to the City Council), a measure Supernaw indicated was intended to avoid having the study come to the Council during the holiday period between Thanksiving and Christmas. Supernaw has since implicitly raised that issue in his weekly emailed newsletter. In his most recent (Nov. 25) emailed newsletter, Councilman Supernaw notes that that the City Manager has stated the move to December was done: "To allow for additional time for review and collection of public input, and to ensure all Councilmembers can be in attendance, the City Council is now scheduled to receive the presentation and public input from the two commission meetings and consider the potential for a FIS facility on December 13, 2016"

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Speaking at a community meeting earlier tonight (Nov. 28) spurred by ELB residents concerned about allowing international flights, 5th district Councilwoman Stacy Mungo (who made the July 8, 2015 motion to proceed with the feasibility study over the dissents of Councilmembers Uranga, Supernaw and Austin) told roughly thirty attendees (mainly from the Plaza area, some from Lakewood Village) that the newly agendized Dec. 6 item leaves unclear what will take place on December 13.

Asked from the audience by LBREPORT.com if she supported Councilman Uranga's agenda item, Councilwoman Mungo said she hadn't read it, then later indicated she might try to make a substitute motion to try and include items she'd like to see addressed in a study session. Mungo cited items including the customs facility's size, likely number of user-carriers, etc. [items arguably most relevant if one supports a customs facility of some size.]

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Councilwoman Mungo told residents that she had read the entire 697 page Feasibility Study, said it didn't answer a number of questions she still has and indicated that she hadn't made up her mind on the issue. When audience members noted that the Feasibility Study cites supposed "regional" economic benefits but doesn't show specifically what economic benefits (if any) Long Beach would receive, Mungo began citing some off the cuff (hotel revenue, conventions and the like) and then opined that in her view a report of this nature couldn't accurately determine Long Beach-specific economic benefits.

When more than one audience member suggested that the public should be allowed to vote on the issue, Councilwoman Mungo avoided giving a direct answer on her position, arguing instead that with a ballot measure, the election would be costly for the city to run and would be heavily influenced by campaign contributions (making it an expensive campaign.)



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