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Ontario officials produced 600 flash drives bearing the slogan "SetONTariofree.com" on one side and "local control" on the other. The flash drive is packed with information on the city's three-year campaign to take back ONT. City officials are in the process of giving away 600 of the USB flash drives to city managers and mayors throughout Southern California.
The map above is a collection of cities, lawmakers and organizations that have voiced support for the initiative to restore local control of L.A./Ontario International Airport. Pushpins represent cities, balloons indicate individual officials, and balloons with points indicate parts of a organization, such as the League of California Cities, Inland Empire Division. Green indicates supporters; red indicates those parties against the initiative.
Keep up: LA/Ontario International Airport news developments | Online | @DBOntarioNow
Ontario's efforts to wrest control of LA/Ontario International Airport from Los Angeles is gaining traction with a wave of cities throughout Southern California -- spanning Laguna Niguel to Barstow and various cities in between, all passing resolutions backing the Inland Empire initiative.
In recent weeks cities in the Inland Empire such as Claremont, Chino Hills, Norco and Rancho Cucamonga have voiced their opinions about the battle over the struggling medium-hub facility. They have been joined by cities in the east San Gabriel Valley that are weighing in on the financial significance the airport has to their region.
"Ontario airport is an economic stimulus to this region, and we as municipalities, as regions and governments, as those who do business in this area, need to support this effort to regain Ontario International Airport as it used to be," said Chino Hills Councilwoman Gwen Norton-Perry.
For the past couple of years, Ontario officials have lobbied for local control, claiming they would be able to convert ONT -- which serves four counties -- into a competitive regional airport again.
The decline in air service at ONT from 2007 to 2011 led to a $494 million blow to the Inland Empire's
economy and the loss of more than 9,000 jobs, according to new figures released by Ontario."The philosophy of many cities is that local control is the best thing. Today, it's Ontario but tomorrow it can be them," said Ontario Councilman Alan Wapner.
The recent push comes less than a month after Ontario launched a public-relations effort to sway Los Angeles voters in the quest to regain control of ONT.
Included in those efforts were 600 USB drives sent to city managers and mayors, which provide them with a sample letter that can be sent to their local politicians urging their support for local control.
Area politicians have been using those sample letters in recent weeks to adopt their own resolutions. In most cases the action has been taken with one sweeping vote while others have sparked discussions and even debates from the dais.
"It's an appropriate thing and there is no reason why someone else should be governing what goes on in a major facility like that, that isn't in our same geographic area," said Chino Hills Mayor Art Bennett, whose city this week passed a resolution supporting Ontario.
Bennett described Los Angeles' involvement with the airport as "an absentee landlord
"The airport is a viable economic component for the Inland Empire and one of the assets to get out this recession."
GWENN NORTON-PERRY
Chino Hills Councilwoman
on a piece of property."
Since 2007, the peak of travel at ONT, the facility has lost more than 40 percent of its seat capacity.
In 2011, about 4.5 million passengers flew out of the airport. New traffic figures indicate ONT has seen a 9 percent drop in December compared to the same month last year.
Cities such as Diamond Bar and Walnut have supported Ontario because of the economic burden they may experience without a thriving airport, Wapner said.
"It does impact each city that is getting involved, because it doesn't just impact residents, it impacts their local businesses as well," he said.
In 2005, the airport saw 544,600 tons of cargo go through its facilities. But with fewer passenger flights, some of which carry freight and cargo, only 417,000 tons passed through ONT in 2011.
Claremont's resolution received support from its council in part because of ONT's importance to regional transportation efforts in the future.
It also marked the first time Councilman Corey Calaycay said he has ever supported a resolution which was not directly city-related.
"I do recognize that a big part of the effort in getting Gold Line (light rail) to this community - which is very, very important -- is the fact we're having the Gold Line go to the Ontario airport," he said. "And the other reality, and this has been mentioned several times, is this is our airport. We don't have any other airport in Claremont.
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Source: http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_19995708?source=rss_emailed
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