Let's Not Fly in the Face of Reality The Van Nuys Airport master plan can be a model of good government or it can degrade the area. Aviation expansion should be abandoned in favor of retail, markets or light industry.: [Valley Edition]

The Los Angeles Department of Airports is at long last working on the Van Nuys Airport master plan. An intensive series of public hearings, workshops, round-table discussions and committee meetings is under way. One is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Airtel Plaza Hotel in Van Nuys. The charge is to develop a plan that will be the guide for the future.

The airport can grow and create more noise, or its 120 acres of unused land can be made an asset to the community by housing retail shopping, markets, commercial space or light manufacturing. The master plan process can be a model of good government. Or it can degrade into a contentious battle among residents, business and aviation interests.

The goals of the master plan are to provide for continued general aviation use, promote economic well-being and public convenience, improve the airport's appearance, minimize adverse environmental impacts and encourage compatibility with surrounding communities.

That is a tall order for an airport that has negatively impacted surrounding communities for decades. Tens of thousands of residents are plagued daily by increasing jet and helicopter noise.

There is a clear consensus among community leaders and residents that no further airport expansion should take place. They are insisting that the available land owned by the airport be used for non-aviation purposes rather than for airport expansion....