Editor:
After reading the filed and served Notices from the FAA to the City of Santa Monica dated September 26, it appears the City is now being made to officially answer for her actions over the past years.
The Notices and the information provided at a recent Press Conference at the observation deck of the airport, really do make clear, the basis for the determination of the certain City Council members to close the airport. In that press release packet is a map showing the physical location of the homes of several City Council members, former Santa Monica City officials and other high level City officials who are at the forefront of the battle to close the airport.
On that map is shown the location of these officials homes and let me tell you, the proximity of those officials homes to the flight path of KSMO, makes it crystal clear why the City is so focused on doing the one thing with the airport it simply is not going to be allowed to do, close it.
Looking at that map, it all makes perfect sense now. These officials live directly under the flight path of the airport and of course if they can make the airport go away, the property value of their homes will rise sharply almost overnight.
I am tired of having my taxes wasted on this futile effort that is doing nothing but costing all of us millions of dollars and getting nowhere. The City gave leases to non-aeronautical businesses at the airport but refused to lease to aviation businesses?!?! The City in one month raised the rent of Atlantic by 80%?!?! Those are the actions of someone who is desperate, not the actions of someone who is acting in good faith and I for one, want the bleeding of our tax dollars so that a few City officials can line their pockets with property value increases. Why should I stand by and have my hard earned tax dollars wasted on this any longer? So Tony Vazquez can pocket a nice chunk of money? That’s not even remotely ethical in my opinion! In fact, the antics of the City as revealed in the September FAA Notices are of such a blatantly negligent nature that I am shocked none of the City Officials involved are facing a grand jury. An 80% rent increase in one month and a 30% increase a month or so before that?!?!
We need to take control back from the City Council and put a clamp on the arterial bleed of money these officials are inflicting on all of us for their own personal gains. This isn't about pollution or noise or anything else. This is about lining the pockets of a select few City Officials and nothing more. That much appears crystal clear now.
Atlantic Aviation and American Flyers have done nothing wrong to deserve such illicit targeting by the City. They have both created jobs, helped improve the airport and provided a much needed service. They pay taxes and fees to the City and from the content of the Notices, they appear to have been beyond reasonable in their efforts to work out a solution with the City. How has the City responded? By giving leases to non-aviation businesses at below market rates and raising the rent of Atlantic 80% in one month. As residents and taxpayers we need to send a message to City Hall that this type of behavior needs to stop and stop now. The City of Santa Monica does not need a reputation like the City of Bell now has and that is exactly what this sort of behavior by our officials will result in if the residents don't move to put an end to it.
Nelson Hernandez is being paid $188,000 dollars to be an advisor to the City Manager on how to close the airport?!?! Apparently Nelson is a personal friend of the City Manager, Rick Cole. Good grief! It all really makes sense now. I for one had been scratching my head as to why the City is so focused on closing the airport when they could simply embrace aviation and make a fortune in the process and do so without the expenditure of millions of dollars of tax payer monies without even one victorious result.
I have attached a copy of the press release which was discussed at a press conference yesterday on the observation deck at KSMO so that you can see for yourselves, the facts. When you combine the elements contained in that press release with the assertions and allegations made by the FAA in the 9/26/16 Notices, it’s not difficult at all to see the truth of what is happening here.
The elections are coming soon for a couple of the City Council members involved in this mess and I for one believe that it’s going to be up to us, the residents of Santa Monica, to put a stop to this lunacy by making sure not to reelect those involved in this mess. We could have done so much good with the millions this City Council has wasted up to this point. It just shocking and we need to step in and vote these people out of office. If they want to use their political office(s) to line their pockets, they should go live in the City of Bell, not Santa Monica! We don't need elected officials who pull stunts as clearly unethical as what is being pulled with regard to KSMO by the current Council and City Manager. No wonder the City Attorney is retiring. She probably is sick and tired of the City Council making her job 100 times harder than it needs to be by continuously getting the City sued by businesses, individuals, aviation companies and now by the FAA itself. This needs to end and it needs to end now. Enough is enough.
Chris Thrasher
Santa Monica
