Taxpayers Might Have to Pay Price for El Toro Services

If horse stables, a golf course, the officers’ club and a handful of other recreation programs continue operating past July 1 at the former El Toro Marine base, it could cost taxpayers as much as $2.2 million a year, according to a report Tuesday to Orange County supervisors.

Board members said they will decide next Tuesday whether to approve the subsidy, which must be weighed against the need for other essential county programs. Among services paid for by general tax funds are health care, fire and law enforcement protection.

The expenses represent the first acknowledgment by county officials that programs operated at El Toro while the fate of the base is debated must come from the general fund.

Until now, the county has been using John Wayne Airport revenue to pay for most aspects of planning for the reuse of the 4,700-acre Marine base. A previous ruling by the Federal Aviation Administration cleared the county to spend John Wayne Airport money to plan for a new airport at El Toro.

County Executive Officer Jan Mittermeier said Tuesday that airport money cannot be used for the interim recreation programs because they have nothing to do with the airport.

The services at the base and maintenance of the facility are paid for with a combination of user fees and Navy funds, although the Navy said it will stop payments after July 1.

The county acknowledged in recent weeks that, even with the Navy contribution toward base costs, the programs are operating at a deficit, and that as much as $623,000 in costs might have to be covered by tax money.

Continuing the programs without the Navy’s help for another year would cost $3.7 million, and would bring in between $1.5 million and $2.4 million in revenue, supervisors were told, meaning the county would have to pay between $1.3 million and $2.2 million a year.

Supervisor Tom Wilson, a supporter of the recreation programs, said it is too early to know how many tax dollars might be needed to prop them up because a business plan hasn’t yet been completed by Mittermeier’s staff. However, he said, he is opposed to “tapping into the general fund for El Toro.”

“I don’t think we’ve maximized our revenue-generating potential” at the base, said Wilson, who wants the county to rent base housing and open other buildings for lease during what could be several more years of interim use.

Board Chairman Chuck Smith said the Navy would have to pay some basic maintenance at the base even if the gates were locked. Navy officials should be willing to contribute at least that minimum amount to help keep the base open, he said.

County officials said they plan to meet today with Navy officials to discuss ways of keeping the base open after July 2, as well as the Navy’s plan for environmental cleanup for the base.

The on-base programs, including the golf course, officer’s club, horse stables and day-care center, have been operated by the county on a temporary basis only for the past year during negotiations with the Navy for a longer-term lease.

Those negotiations stalled awaiting action by a state commission to allow the county to assume police power over the base from the federal government. The Navy has said it won’t sign a long-term lease with the county until the police power has been transferred. Once that occurs, the county will be able to start selling alcohol at the golf course and officer’s club--a huge anticipated source of revenue.

County officials said they plan to meet Friday with members of the anti-airport El Toro Reuse Planning Authority, which threatened to sue the State Lands Commission if it approved the police-powers transfer.

Authority Executive Director Paul Eckles said the group is willing to drop its challenge if the county and the Navy guarantees that there will be no airport or aviation uses at the base before the property is deeded to the county.