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Published on 03/23/1998 All articles from this issue

Officials present Moffett Field update at Los Altos meeting

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By Merle Baruch

Special to the Town Crier

Many people who came to the Los Altos-Mountain View League of Women Voters' March 25 meeting wanted answers. Would Moffett Federal Airfield again allow regular flights and become a source of continual noise? Would San Jose be allowed to use this airfield as a "reliever" airport for its own purposes?

The answers to these and other similar questions were addressed by a panel of speakers at the Los Altos Main Library. Speakers included former Santa Clara County Supervisor Dianne McKenna, and NASA Director Michael Marlaire, as well as assistant city managers and council members from Mountain View and Sunnyvale.

Questions about Moffett's future have been raised since at least 1991, when a federal government committee recommended decommissioning the Naval Air Station at Moffett and transferring control to NASA. This was completed in 1994 with a name change to Moffett Federal Airfield.

However, NASA was left with a $3.5 million deficit that officials need to resolve in order to continue to operate.

"After looking for ways to reduce this shortfall in 1995-1996," said Mountain View council member Pat Figuera, "air cargo became a possible solution. But the City of Mountain View voted no to this proposition in a ballot initiative in 1996."

NASA formed a Community Advisory Committee to seek compromise solutions.

Sunnyvale, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills city councils have drafted resolutions in opposition to Moffett air cargo flights.

Former Sunnyvale city councilwoman and Santa Clara Supervisor Dianne McKenna, who chaired the Community Advisory Committee, spoke about the nine-month process.

McKenna said the 19-member committee's findings included a "general acceptance" category which included: research and development campus and light industrial park; astrobiology institute; and bay trail expansion.

"Nonacceptable" land uses from this committee included a general aviation airfield; new 49er's stadium; warehouse distribution center, and a prison and youth correctional center.

Lenny Siegal, who started a group called "Alliance for a New Moffett Field," which originally opposed the Air Cargo possibility in 1996, talked about his disappointment in the group's findings.

"They only looked at possibilities with the continued use of the airfield," Siegal said. "Our group, now consisting of 400 families, want them ( NASA) to consider tearing down the runway and using the land in other ways. If they tear down the runway, which they don't really need anyway, then there is never the chance of San Jose taking over, or the possibility of any commercial air flights happening."

"I'm not sure if NASA really wants to consider letting go of the airfield to pursue other land uses," said Los Altos resident Bill Moniz. "Lockheed, a large employer in the area, really needs the airfield."

No specific long-term timelines for Moffett decisions were discussed at last week's meeting. Mountain View and Sunnyvale city councils were set to discuss Moffett options this week.