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Photograph by George Sakkestad

Currently Moffett doesn't house any corporate jets, though other forms of aircraft occupy the base.

City allows corporate jets at Moffett

Council gives priority to building hangar

By Justin Berton

Corporate jets owned by tenants at Moffett Field can now use the airstrip after the Sunnyvale City Council approved a new list of priorities and policies for the complex at the Aug. 18 meeting.

Council also gave a "high" priority ranking to securing finances to build a new hangar to keep the 129th Rescue Wing onsite and to create the Western Disaster Center at the complex.

Councilmember Pat Vorreiter, who called for the allowance of the corporate jets, said the move would give current tenants an incentive to stay at Moffett Field and potential tenants an incentive to move in.

Vorreiter also said if the city refused to allow NASA some flexibility with its tenants, than the city could risk a NASA pull-out from the premises.

"We [would be] encouraging the possibility for NASA/ Ames to throw their hands up and say, 'We can't do this anymore.'

"We can't say, 'No, no, no' to everything that has wings," Vorreiter said.

Alan Tempelton, a member of Citizens for a Greater Sunnyvale, told the council, "The people are determined not to set a precedent. There is a strong perception that corporate jets at Moffett Field is a back door [for future aviation]."

But Vorreiter reminded critics that only tenants of the complex could use the airstrip and only in "ancillary and limited use," which would limit the number of flights.

Currently, there are no tenants who own corporate jets at Moffett Field.

The city conducted a study on the number of corporate jets that occupy nearby airports; San Jose International houses 74. The annual number of takeoffs and landings are unknown, the report stated. In San Francisco, there are 2,556 corporate jet takeoffs and landings each year.

Corporate jets are not considered commercial aviation--which the council has steadfastly opposed--because the jets do not sell seats to passengers or carry air cargo for profit, according to Dan Rich, an administrative assistant for the city manager.

Councilmember Jack Walker, who voted with the majority in the 6-1 vote, said, "It's strictly there to be a sweetener to the pie and to add a little more to the tenants out there."

Councilmember Stan Kawczynski cast the dissenting vote.

With respect to the new hangar for the 129th Rescue Wing, the city's staff will now take proactive measures to persuade the U.S. Congress to appropriate funding for the project. The current hangar, which predates World War II, is in need of costly repairs and seismic retrofitting.

The city will also pursue the creation of the Western Disaster Center as part of the National Disaster Information Network as proposed by Vice President Al Gore. NASA is providing approximately $5 million for the center, while Sen. Barbara Boxer is introducing legislation to Congress to financially support the project.

City officials hope the 129th Rescue Wing and the Western Disaster Center will serve as long-term tenants for the complex.

For the past two years, the city's lobbyist firm, Black, Kelly, Scruggs & Healy has been working to push through legislation on the two projects. But the contract with the company will expire Aug. 31.

In a letter to the city of Sunnyvale, John F. Scruggs said the group "has decided not to submit a proposal for ongoing services to the city of Sunnyvale."

Subcontractors who worked for the lobbyists will most likely take over the causes, according to a city report.

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This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, August 26, 1998.
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