January 22, 2003

San Diego County Regional Airport Authority Board Meeting

Comments by John Chalker, Chairman, ASAP21
to the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority
Board Meeting on January 9, 2002


Good morning Mr. Chairman and Commissioners, thank you for the opportunity to address the Authority this morning.

I am John Chalker, Founder and Chairman of ASAP21, the Alliance in Support of Airport Progress in the 21st Century.

ASAP21 is dedicated to leading a broad based, inclusive group of stakeholders from throughout the county and coordinating their efforts to develop a world class,
21st Century, environmentally sound international airport benefiting the economy and quality of life of San Diego County and its citizens. Our member organizations include broad geographic and political representation, including various business, labor and planning groups. We are reaching out to environmental, aviation, military and consumer organizations.

Our members believe that Lindbergh Field’s infrastructure will be insufficient to meet the aviation demands of the region by 2020, regardless of future improvements. The airport’s economic impact on the region is more significant than any other piece of infrastructure, it accounts for approximately 5 % of our gross regional product, and is vital to the success of our manufacturing, high tech and tourism industries.

This morning I wish to congratulate you as individuals for accepting this challenging position and to leave you with two brief thoughts.

Vision, and political will.

You must have the vision to look out 50-100 years on this decision because it will have broad reaching consequences on our standard of living and quality of life. This is not about finding a replacement for the current Lindbergh Field, it’s about finding a site that can handle the aviation demand of the region for the next 50-100 years.

You will need a strong political will to reach this decision, and I urge you to rely on the objective recommendations from the world class consultants that you employ and the ably lead, and competent staff of the Authority regarding technical, environmental and economic issues.

ASAP21 is here to support this process, to prod you when necessary, and to literally walk out on the limb with you in order to achieve progress in a reasonable time. We urge you to move forward with good speed on this issue.

I look forward to meeting individually with you in the future to discuss ASAP21 in detail.
Thank you Mr. Chairman and Commissioners

Last Updated: October 03, 2003

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