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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04 28 1989 FAA Seeks Meeting With City Officials6A; - Friday, -April 28_1.989, Vero Beach, Fla., Press -Journal ebast'ian • Grant 0 Micco-Little Hollywood • Barefoot Bay • Seb FAA Seeks.Meeting With City Officials Will Point Out Troubles With Referendum By PATRICIA DMALLA Sebastian Bureau Chief Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration have contacted Sebastian officials in an effort to set up a meeting to discuss changing the airport referen- dum, says a public affairs officer with the FAA. "The objective of the meeting," said Roger Myv.-rs, assistant public affairs officer with the Southern Re- gional Office of the FAA in Atlanta, "would be to go over the referendum and point out to city officials how certain items in the referendum would invalidate the grant agreement." City Manager Robb McClary said he has been trying since April 21 to reach Steve Brill, the FAA airports division chief in Atlanta, to set up the meeting, but the two have been missing each other's calls. McClary said he expects Brill, who was out of the office Wednesday and Thursday, to return his call today. FAA officials from Washington, Atlanta and Orlando would participate in the meeting, Myers said, in an effort to try to get the city to change certain pro- visions of the referendum and discuss what the FAA's course of action would be if the referendum is put into effect. Myers declined, however, to be specific. "It is too early to speculate what the FAA's actions would be," he said. Mayor Richard Votapka said he received a tele- phone call on April 21 from Brill about arranging the meeting and turned over the matter to the city man- ager. Votapka said he asked Brill why the FAA officials from Washington and Atlanta didn't attend a Feb. 21 meeting that the city arranged specifically to discuss the implications of the referendum, if passed. Two representatives of the AAA from the Orlando office were the only two to show up. "He said he didn't realize the severity of the situ- ation," Votapka said. "Now they do realize the severi- ty and would like to have a meeting with us." On March 14, Sebastian voters approved a referen- dum that changed the city charter limiting how the city raised money to run the airport. Two provisions of the new charter amendment, which have to be implemented within 90 days of referendum approval, require the setting of landing fees for all operations at the airport and enactment of an ordinance imposing a 65 decibel noise limit at the airport. Those two provisions have raised a howl of protest from the fixed base operators at the airport, who have threatened to sue the city. They also have prompted a review by the FAA, ongoing since March, of the Sebastian airport. On April 20, the City Council hired a Washington, D.C., attorney to draft the charter amendments and represent it in the event any lawsuits are brought over the airport.