Airport Commission Approves $500 Million
Agreement To Help Communities Near LAX
Landmark Deal Would Set National Precedent With Far-Reaching Package of Environmental, Economic Benefits for Residents Affected by Airport Modernization

The Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) Board of Commissioners voted 4-0 today to approve an historic community benefits agreement that would bring major improvements to residents affected by the proposed modernization of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

The legally binding agreement - the result of months of discussions between the City, LAWA, and more than 20 community groups, environmental organizations, school districts and labor unions - would establish a national precedent. At half a billion dollars, it represents the largest and most comprehensive community benefits agreement ever negotiated, covering a broad range of impacts including environmental, labor, noise, health and accountability issues.

The agreement now moves to the City Council, which also must approve the LAX modernization plan, an $11 billion proposal to renovate and improve the airport. The Council will vote tomorrow on the modernization proposal, while a final vote on the community benefits agreement is expected December 14.

"This agreement shows that by working in coalition from the beginning, large scale development projects can result in economic benefits, social benefits and environmental benefits," said Jerilyn López Mendoza, policy director of the Los Angeles office of Environmental Defense, one of the lead organizations involved in the negotiations. "By easing the pollution burden from LAX, this agreement secures a huge health and quality-of-life victory for area residents. This agreement can now serve as a model for other communities nationwide to bring economic and environmental benefits to their own neighborhoods."

The agreement would offer significant economic opportunities and quality-of-life improvements to residents east of the airport, who historically have suffered the worst consequences of airport development and had little voice in the decision-making process.

"Los Angeles is setting a new precedent," said Rev. William Smart, senior community organizer at the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, which pioneered the concept of community benefits agreements and played a lead role in the negotiations. "We are demonstrating that when communities have a place at the table, economic development works better for everyone."

The agreement also would be the first CBA negotiated with a government entity. When the coalition approached Los Angeles Mayor Jim Hahn late last year to propose the CBA, he immediately demonstrated his commitment to the communities surrounding the airport by directing Los Angeles World Airports and his own staff to work with the coalition to negotiate the agreement. Previous agreements, including half a dozen in Los Angeles, have been reached between private developers and community organizations.

"This Community Benefits Agreement is a national model for airport development and serves to enhance the quality of life of the communities surrounding LAX as we move forward with our plans to make LAX safer and more secure for the millions of travelers who pass through the airport every year," said Hahn. "I am proud that together we have developed a comprehensive environmental, economic and educational community benefits agreement that will directly benefit the communities most impacted by operations at LAX."

The key improvements that would result from the community benefits agreement include:

• Sound proofing all affected schools.
  
• Increasing funding for the sound proofing of homes.
  Retrofitting diesel construction vehicles and diesel vehicles operating on the tarmac to curb dangerous air pollutants by up to 90%.
  Electrifying airplane gates to eliminate pollution from jet engine idling.
  Studying the health impacts of airport operations on surrounding communities and making those studies public on the LAWA web site.
  Providing $15 million in job training funds for airport and aviation-related jobs.
  Creating a local hiring program to give priority to local residents, low-income and special needs individuals for new LAX jobs.
  Enhance opportunities for local, minority and women-owned businesses in the modernization of LAX.
  
• Monitoring LAX, enforcing the agreement's provisions and holding LAX accountable to the community.

"The community benefits agreement has given disparate groups an opportunity to come together and work out differing opinions about how the development should be done," said Daniel K. Tabor, an Inglewood resident and community activist who helped lead the negotiations. "As a result, LAWA and the City have avoided costly and lengthy litigation and the community will get health and jobs protection up front."

If approved by the airport commission, the agreement will go to the City Council for a vote on December 14 along with the final Council approval of the LAX master plan.