It is said that justice delayed is justice denied. And, it is common (even more so, these days?) for the status quo to delay EVERYTHING for the simple reason that it perpetuates their advantaged position. So, in a situation such as the decades-old fight for local control of their airport, the people of Santa Monica just have to keep on keepin’ on.
Nearly three years ago, the City of Santa Monica filed a lawsuit seeking to establish the right to control the local airport. FAA (and the federal Department of Justice) fought back and successfully convinced a District Court Judge to kick the can down the road. Now, more than two years further along (and still no relief from jet fumes, leaded fuel, and noise), the City has prevailed in an appeal, and the Judge’s February 2014 decision has been ruled improper.
Yesterday, the people scored a small victory when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued their decision, remanding a case back to the District Court. Here is a link to an aiREFORM page with a transcript of the March 11th arguments, and below is a copy of the 7-page ‘Memorandum’ outlining the decision:
Click on the image below for a scrollable view; the PDF file may be downloaded.
See also:
- Santa Monica Airport Litigation – a webpage by the city, with a chronology showing the case documents, including numerous links to PDF copies.
- 3/11/2016: Transcript, Oral Arguments before panel of Judges at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals[KSMO] – aiREFORM Post
- 2/18/2016: An Update on the Santa Monica Situation [KSMO] – aiREFORM Post
- 1/22/2015: Amicus Brief filed by AOPA & NBAA – 229-pages
- 3/26/2008: Order to Show Cause (9p) – FAA issued this administrative order in 2008, a day after the City had passed an ordinance to ban jets for safety reasons.
- 1984: Airport Agreement Between FAA and Santa Monica – the agreement to stop efforts to close the airport in early 1980s, setting a new date of 7/1/2015 when the city could resume full local control of the airport.
- 1981: Resolution to close KSMO, approved unanimously by Santa Monica City Council (6/23/1981, 5-pages)
- 1948: Instrument of Transfer – with the war effort over, the Federal Government gave control of SMO back to the local community (18p)