CARLSBAD, Calif. — The City of Carlsbad has approved retaining local control of the McClellan-Palomar Airport which includes land use decisions and approvals for expanding the airport.
The Carlsbad City Council voted unanimously to maintain local control of the airport Tuesday.
"I want to thank you for taking back local control of the airport. It has been a rocky road and hard work on these issues is greatly appreciated," said Susie, a Carlsbad resident.
The airport property was annexed into the city decades ago but the county of San Diego owns and operates the airport. For years, Citizens for a Friendly Airport, also known as C4FA, has advocated for the city to gain control.
"Tonight is the culmination of 7 years of work and over $1 million in legal fees spent by the city of Carlsbad and C4FA over the last 7 years," said Vickey Syage, president of Citizens for a Friendly Airport.
Commercial flights could be returning to the McClellan-Palomar Airport as soon as early next year. American Airlines looks to offer direct flights from Carlsbad to Phoenix. Some residents have raised concerns over noise and air pollution from the added flights.
"My hope is our city council will implement the necessary actions in the most aggressive way and fullest extent of the law and that's what I believe it will take to assert local control," said another Carlsbad resident.
After Tuesday's vote, some provisions related to local control will go into effect immediately while others will require a second reading which will likely happen at the next council meeting.