Published Wednesday, February 5, 2003 The Rancho Murieta Airport took a big step toward regaining its night operations Tuesday when the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors voted to begin the process to trim or remove trees near the runway. The trees are on county parkland adjoining the airport and include some heritage oak and walnut trees that are more than 200 years old. “Trees do grow again,” said Supervisor Muriel Johnson. “You can’t grow people again if they get killed by trees.” The airport’s night operations permit was suspended in 2001 by the state Department of Transportation because of the safety hazard posed by the trees.

Previous coverage • Don't cut down trees near RM Airport, county report recommends (January 23, 2003) • Airport cuts down 20 trees near runway and awaits county decision on 20 more (August 18, 2002) • County orders 10 trees removed at airport -- and saves daytime flight operations (May 1, 2002) • State says airport trees must be cut by May 31 or all flights will be halted (April 26, 2002) • Airport oaks face ax (April 11, 2002)

“It was never Caltrans’ intent that those trees be there for night operations,” Gary Knudsen, Caltrans aviation safety officer, told the supervisors. “Our first job is to protect the flying public.”

After a two-hour delay caused by an over-full agenda, the supervisors heard testimony from nearly a dozen speakers who urged them to do what was necessary to restore night operations.

Most who spoke were part of a group of pilots and airport business representatives who met with Supervisor Don Nottoli at the airport on Sunday to discuss the issue. About 25 were at that meeting, which lasted several hours, according to participants.

“We have a good group of pilots at Rancho Murieta. We get together every Sunday morning,” said Ron Pizer before the supervisors’ hearing. “That airport’s the only reason I live in (Rancho Murieta).”

Like several other Rancho Murieta pilots who spoke at the supervisors meeting, Pizer uses his plane for business commuting. His company, Folsom Research, builds video products, including equipment for flight simulators. “The last two years it’s been a hassle because you can’t fly in at night” when returning from meetings in San Francisco or Los Angeles, he said.

“The power company trims trees to do their job” and the county should do the same thing, Pizer said. He told the board the problem “had a very simple solution” and urged them to “trim the trees back and go on with our lives.”

Several airport business representatives told the board how the loss of night operations directly affected their businesses.

Nancy Ginesi, the manager of the Flying Vikings Flight School and former manager of the American Aero Club, told the supervisors, “We are unable to grow as a flight school and prosper as a business” without night operations.

Before the meeting, Ginesi said the club considered other locations before moving to the airport from Natomas Air Park about three years ago. One of the reasons for selecting Rancho Murieta was it offered day and night operations, she explained. “Then, a year later --boom -- out go the lights.”

For San Joaquin Helicopters, night operations are an essential part of its business, Manager James Arbaugh told the supervisors. Night calls are frequent for the troubleshooting services the company offers to utilities and for firefighting, another service it provides, he said. The company also has police and fire district aircraft maintenance contracts that require night work so the equipment will be ready for use the next day, according to Arbaugh.

At a hearing last April on the issue, the supervisors directed parks staff to prepare a report on the issue. The report presented to the supervisors for consideration at Tuesday’s session recommended that the airport seek a variance for the trees to allow night operations and the county would take no action to trim or remove the trees.

If the supervisors did decide to take action on to either remove the trees or light them, the report recommended an environmental review be done as part of the process and that funding be secured from the airport to cover all costs. The costs for tree removal and trimming alone were estimated at $70,000. The environmental review costs are unknown.

At the 11th hour, the supervisors received a letter from Dave Lucchetti, trustee for the Anderson family trust, which owns the airport. Supervisor Illa Collin, who chairs the board, said she had received the letter, which is addressed to her, on Tuesday morning. The letter is dated Jan. 31.

In the letter, Lucchetti is critical of the county’s report. He proposed that the airport and the county either share the cost of removing and trimming the trees or that the county sell 10 acres of the parkland to the airport for $10,000 an acre, provided the airport could get the necessary approvals to remove the trees.

Lucchetti said the delay in resolving the issue has deprived the airport of a cash sale of the property. At last year’s hearing before the board, airport counsel Arthur J. Negrette said the airport had a buyer and the sale was contingent on having the night operations permit.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Collin’s reaction to the cost-sharing proposal was, “You’re sharing with a department that has no money.”

Johnson suggested the county take the airport up on its offer to pay for the removal of about 20 trees and the trimming of others obstructing the airport’s clear zone. The county estimates there are 40 to 50 trees on county property. The airport cut down 20 trees and trimmed back others on its property last summer.

The purchase offer was not discussed at the meeting.

According to the supervisors’ vote, the county parks staff is to begin the process to restore night operations. That process is to include an environmental review and funding agreements. Nottoli asked that the staff report back to the supervisors in two weeks.

The board’s action comes at a critical time for the airport. Knudsen told the supervisors Caltrans has a hearing scheduled in March to determine if the airport’s night operations permit should be revoked permanently.

When asked after the meeting what effect the supervisors’ action might have on Caltrans’ decision, Knudsen said, “We’re encouraged by the vote. Hopefully, we’ll be able to restore nighttime operation soon.”

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