Paul Clinton
CIVIC CENTER -- On May 16, the City Council is scheduled to place an
initiative on the ballot that would ask voters if Burbank residents
should have final approval of any new terminal at Burbank Airport.
The council tentatively agreed to the plan Tuesday. The city-drafted
initiative is expected to appear on the ballot Nov. 7.
"We come up with a final agreement, buy off on it, then submit it to
the voters," Vice Mayor Bill Wiggins said Tuesday.
Council members must wait until May 16 to formally approve the
proposal, since state election law requires no more than 180 days between the time the election is approved and the time it is held.
The initiative proposed by the council would not be a referendum on a
current deal. Instead, it would give Burbank voters an opportunity to
approve any future deal. If it passes, neither the current council nor a
future council could make a deal for a new terminal without voter
approval.
Since Burbank doesn't have a municipal election scheduled until
February -- when three council seats will be contested -- the measure
will likely be put on the county's ballot in November.
On Tuesday, Burbank City Council members agreed to place the
initiative on the November ballot instead of holding a special election
because that option is less costly. In a report, City Clerk Judie Sarquiz
said it would cost Burbank about $47,000 to consolidate the measure with
other county measures and the state and Presidential elections.
The decision to seek voter approval for a terminal deal stemmed from
the council's rejection of a petition circulated by the grass-roots group
Restore Our Airport Rights. ROAR petitioners collected more than 7,400
signatures, but their bid to put the initiative before the voters was
denied because organizers failed to adequately identify supporters. The
ROAR initiative demanded Burbank officials obtain a mandatory nighttime
curfew and cap on flights in any terminal deal.
Facing mounting criticism by the Federal Aviation Administration and
others, Burbank officials said last week they would attempt to
renegotiate a development deal with the airport. The Aug. 4 Framework for
Settlement will be a starting point for those negotiations but will be
significantly altered, city officials said.
At the time, Glendale's outgoing Mayor Ginger Bremberg said she was
opposed to a binding vote by Burbank residents because it infringed on
her city's rights as a member of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport
Authority.
"I don't think it's fair. We are three equal partners," Bremberg said.
"You want to buy us out, it's $100 million. Just give us our share."
However, Glendale's new Mayor Dave Weaver -- he was sworn in Tuesday --
was more receptive to the idea of giving Burbank voters final word on a
terminal deal.
"This is a very personal issue with the Burbank people and their
council," Weaver said. "They're close to the action. If they believe
that's the way to go, so be it."
