PUBLIC MEETINGS SCHEDULED TO DISCUSS REVISED NOTICE OF PREPARATION OF DRAFT ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT REPORT FOR LAX NORTHSIDE PLAN UPDATE

(Los Angeles. California – April 5, 2012)  Two public scoping meetings are scheduled by Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) during April to discuss a Notice of Preparation of a Draft Environmental Impact Report for Los Angeles International Airport’s (LAX) Northside Plan Update (Project).

The first meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 18, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The second meeting will be held on Saturday, April 21, from 10 a.m. to 12 Noon. Both meetings will be held in the gymnasium of St. Bernard High School, 9100 Falmouth Ave., Playa del Rey.  The content of each meeting will be the same.

The first proposal for the site was called the LAX Northside Plan, which was approved in 1984 for more than 4.5 million square feet of commercial development. This current effort to modernize that proposal is known as the LAX Northside Plan Update.

This update would permit up to 2.3 million square feet of commercial development, permit areas for open space for recreational and buffer uses, and allow uses and development rights to be transferred within limited areas on the site. Implementation of the proposed project may also include a street vacationing of Cum Laude Avenue.

An Initial Study has been prepared to help identify which areas of the environment the LAX Northside Plan Update may potentially significantly impact. These effects include: aesthetics, air quality, biological resources, hazards and hazardous materials, hydrology/water quality, land use/planning, noise, population/housing, public services, recreation transportation/traffic and public utilities. Because of the potential for these impacts, an Environmental Impact Report will be prepared for the project that will further evaluate these issues.

A copy of the Initial Study is available for review at the Westchester-Loyola Village Branch Library, located at 7114 W. Manchester Ave., Los Angeles, and at the project website at laxnorthside.org.

All comments on the Initial Study will be considered in preparation of the Environmental Impact Report.  Written comments should be postmarked by May 4, 2012, the end of the 30-day public review period.

Comments should be sent to Herb Glasgow, Chief of Airport Planning I, City of Los Angeles World Airports, 1 World Way, Room 218B, Los Angeles, CA 90045, or by e-mail to laxnorthside@lawa.org .