Background
In November 1994, seventeen months after the decision to close Marine Core Air Station (MCAS) El Toro in Orange County, California,
Measure A was passed by Orange County voters, designating MCAS El Toro for commercial aviation use. The Orange County Board
of Supervisors, supported by the John Wayne Airport neighbors, hoped to develop a large commercial airport that would serve
38 million passengers annually, and eventually replace John Wayne as Orange County's airport. As plans for the El Toro airport
project were made public, the communities surrounding El Toro organized to oppose it and developed a competing plan, the Orange
County Central Park and Nature Initiative. The initiative supported the development of a 1,300 acre public space that would
include a sports park, botanical garden, and cultural terrace.
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