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HALL OF ADMINISTRATION L#1940
(805) 654-2681 • FAX (805) 658-4500 • 800 South Victoria Avenue, Ventura, CA 93009
COUNTY EXECUTIVE OFFICE
MICHAEL POWERS
County Executive Officer
Mike Pettit
Assistant County Executive Officer
Kaye Mand
County Chief Financial Officer
Shawn Atin
Assistant County Executive Officer/
Human Resources Director
Labor Relations
January 19, 2022
Mr. Greg Ramirez, City Manager Via email: [email protected] City of Camarillo
601 Carmen Drive
Camarillo, CA 93010
RE: The 1976 Camarillo Airport Joint Powers Agreement
Dear Greg,
This letter is a follow -up to your letter dated December 17, 2021 and my subsequent letter dated December 22, 2021 regarding our Camarillo Airport Joint Powers Agreement. I would like to reiterate that we look forward to working with the City and continuing in the spirit of the 1976 Joint Powers Agreement (Agreement).
We concur that the Agreement was established between the County and the City to “…achieve maximum mutual cooperation in the development of C amarillo Airport and to maintain a balanced perspective in fulfilling COUNTY aviation requirements within a framework of continuing community sensitivity.” We have continuously developed and maintained Camarillo Airport in the spirit of this Agreement during the past 45 years.
Although we have some reservations regarding whether the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) would support some of the operating restrictions in the Agreement if they were challenged, we are no longer asking the City to explore changes to these restrictions. The Agreement lists six operating restrictions that were put in place to balance airport operations with community sensitivity, and they include:
1. The Airport shall be operated for general aviation purposes only . Camarillo Airport has not had scheduled commercial service or freight air cargo operations, and the County is not intending to pursue these types of business operations in the future. The County has designated only the Oxnard Airport as the commercial service airport an d currently that facility maintains an FAA Federal Aviation Regulation (FAR) Part 139 commercial airport certificate. The County has no intent to seek a Part 139 certificate for Camarillo Airport.
2. The airport operating hours will be from 7:00 AM to 10:00 PM. The operating hours set forth in the Agreement were amended decades ago, following the Agreement’s established process, to limit departures between the hours of 12 midnight to 5:00 AM, and these hours remain in effect.
3. The usable runway length shall not exceed 6,000 feet and shall be the most westerly 6,000 feet of the existing runway. The current runway length is 6,013 or 0.2% above the stipulated length, and the County has no intent to extend the runway.
4. An aircraft weight limitation of 115,000 lbs. (twin wheel) shall be in effect . This requirement is controlled by the runway and taxiway pavement design strength limitations and those limitations remain unchanged.
5. The airport VFR (Visual Flight Rules) traffic pattern shall be to the south of the airfield. The direction and operation of aircraft in flight is solely the discretion of the FAA, but the published traffic pattern has remained unchanged.
2 6. Airport development shall be guided to ensure that residential areas are not exposed to noise levels greater than 60 CNEL average noise and 90 dBA single event noise. The County believes we continue to meet this goal from an airport development perspective; however, this responsibility equally rests with the City of Camarillo and its zoning/land use planning for development near the airport.
As I previously stated, we continue to embrace the spirit of original Agreement. Additionally, I want to let you know that I have directed the Department of Airports to do more to show our continued good faith with the City of Camarillo and our community members. I asked the new Director of Airports, Keith Freitas, to specifically focus on rebuilding relationships with Camarillo Airport stakeholders. Mr. Freitas, as you know, is a highly experienced airport director and is fully on board with this approach.
Towards this effort, I would like to share with you some of the actions already taken and further actions that are actively being worked on:
• The County halted work on the Camarillo Airport Master Plan to provi de more opportunities for the community to provide input regarding the future of the airport. The Department of Airports is working with the FAA to terminate the Airport Master Plan process and will revisit this process in a few years.
• The Department of Airports has submitted a $525,000 FAA grant request to conduct an FAR Part 150 Noise Compatibility Study for the Camarillo Airport. The FAR Part 150 study is a data -driven process that will update noise exposure maps and features comprehensive stakeholder pr ocess.
During the course of the project airport staff and noise experts will engage community members, pilots, and businesses seeking to develop the best partnership/balance for Camarillo Airport. • The Department of Airports will establish, for the first time, a dedicated position that will focus exclusively on community relations that would include development and management of a robust airport noise program. This position will work with flight schools, pilots and aviation businesses to help ensure Camarillo Airport is a good neighbor.
• The Department will purchase, install and implement new technology that will have capability for real time aircraft flight tracking, attitude readings, and aircraft identification. The new community relations staff member w ill utilize this technology as a tool for communicating with pilots and community members regarding noise related incidents.
I hope that we have clearly conveyed the County’s position in that we have operated the Camarillo Airport in compliance with the 1976 Joint Powers Agreement for the past 45 years. The County sees our partnership with the City of Camarillo regarding the Airport as a priority as we do with so many other important regional matters. We look forward to building a stro ng future together to the benefit of the communities we serve.
Sincerely,
Michael Powers
County Executive Officer
c: Kelly Long, District 3 Supervisor
Mike Pettit, Assistant County Executive Officer
Keith Freitas, Director of Airports