The CASMAT Santa Monica Airport Visioning Survey was conducted from November 2011 until March 2012.
Link: Full analysis report.
Summary
A total of just under 1,100 responses (more that 3 times city workshop attendee totals), 982 after eliminating duplicates and validating e-mail addresses etc. (for on-line surveys only).
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%
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BASIC RESULTS
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72%
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Want the city to “Reduce or Eliminate Aircraft Operations to stop the need for subsidies”
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80%
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Want “Aircraft Operations decreased or eliminated”. Over 50% want them eliminated completely.
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74%
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Want “non-aviation real-estate operations maintained or increased”
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78%
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Want “Flight School Operations decreased or eliminated”. Almost 60% want them eliminated completely.
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86%
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Want “The City to take whatever steps are necessary to reduce or eliminate noise, safety, and health risks”
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57% of respondents were from Santa Monica. 19% each from Venice and Mar Vista, 5% from other cities. As can be seen from the basic results above, more than 3/4 of respondents are ‘pro-change’.
Conclusion (1): The city should seek to dramatically reduce or eliminate aircraft activity at SMO. In particular, the community clearly wishes both jet traffic and flight school operations drastically reduced, or preferably eliminated completely. SMO continuing essentially ‘as is’ is not acceptable to the community.
More detailed analysis of answers to the final free-text ‘visioning’ question for the ‘pro-change’ responses yields the following additional insights on the public areas of concern (concerns may overlap, and one respondent may have multiple concerns, so percentages need not add to 100%):
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Count
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%
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Concerns
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358
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44.6
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Did not specify why they are ‘pro-change’
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211
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26.3
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Anti-jet traffic
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194
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24.2
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Concerned about ‘noise’
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143
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17.8
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Concerned about ‘pollution’
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134
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16.7
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Concerned about ‘safety’ or ‘danger’
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64
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8.0
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Concerned about ‘health’
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50
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6.2
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Concerned about costs, economics, or subsidies
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Conclusion (2): There is broad concern that should some or all of the airport space be freed up in 2015, it would be aggressively developed. There is an overwhelming ‘green’ meta-theme (83.5%) to the visioning suggestions – open space, sustainable, low traffic etc.
Conclusion (3): Use of any land removed from aviation use in 2015 for open space, parkland, gardens, or playing fields, is acceptable to the overwhelming majority of ‘pro-change’ respondents.
Conclusion (4): The 8 identified visioning themes that have significant public support include (in order of preference):
- Parkland/Gardens
- Non-aviation business/office use
- Sports fields/facilities
- Arts studios/theatre/concerts
- Housing/residential
- Santa Monica College expansion
- Retail and Restaurant use
- Other community uses.
Themes may overlap, and one respondent may mention multiple themes, so percentages need not add to 100%:
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Count
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%
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Visioning ‘Theme’
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|
208
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46.8/83.5*
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Parkland or Gardens
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84
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18.9
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Business or Office use
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71
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16.0/83.5*
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Sports facilities and playing fields
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60
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13.5
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The arts (e.g., studios, theaters, concerts)
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55
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12.4
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Housing/Residential use (esp. low income)
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46
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10.4
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Santa Monica College (SMC) or other education use
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45
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10.1
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Boutique retail and Restaurant uses
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43
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9.7
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Senior centers, new schools, and other assorted community uses not covered above.
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*The split percentages for “parkland or gardens” and “sports facilities and playing fields” reflect the fact that both these land use types are clearly ‘green’ and thus would probably be acceptable to any respondent expressing a ‘green’ preference.
CASMAT will conduct a further on-line survey in the near future in order to further flesh out these 8 basic themes and obtain more precise public land-use preferences.
CASMAT will conduct a further on-line survey in the near future in order to further flesh out these 8 basic themes and obtain more precise public land-use preferences.