ATTORNEY WEIGHS IN WITH OPINION; AIRPORT COMMISSION COUNSEL SAYS LIMITS ON AIRPLANE SIZE NOT LAW.

Byline: Tony Knight Daily News Staff Writer

An Airport Commission resolution prohibiting certain types of heavy aircraft from operating at Van Nuys Airport can't be enforced in court and doesn't have to be followed by the Airports Department, a commission attorney said Tuesday.

The comment was made to the Van Nuys Airport Citizens Advisory Council, which had asked for a report on the controversial 1984 resolution that appears to ban many aircraft now operating at the airport.

``It's a policy that's there, period. It is not an ordinance that can be enforced in court,'' said Assistant City Attorney Bret Lobner. ``I think they (the commission) passed it with good intentions and the rest is history.''

The ruling was supported by the advisory board members representing aviation interests but harshly criticized by homeowner leaders at the meeting.

``Where is the good faith by this Department of Airports, saying that a policy that's been in place for years - that we can ignore it?'' asked council member Don Schultz, who is also president of the Van Nuys Homeowners Association.

``If we are now going to say that resolutions mean nothing, then any resolution you don't want to follow folks, you don't have to follow because Mr. Lobner says they don't mean anything,'' added Gerald A. Silver, president of the Homeowners of Encino.

Airport officials were stunned in January when confronted with a 1969 Airport Commission resolution prohibiting planes heavier than 12,500 pounds from operating as charters or air taxis at the airport.

The board reaffirmed the policy in a 1984 resolution. And San Fernando Valley homeowners were assured by Mayor Tom Bradley in 1984 that the policy would not be changed without an environmental review and public hearings.

But airport officials acknowledged this year that there were dozens of aircraft over the 12,500-pound limit operating as unscheduled charters and air taxis.

Moreover, the biggest and most influential businesses at the airport were operating the heavy planes. The commission had over the years granted millions of dollars in leases and development agreements to airport businesses operating the heavier aircraft.

Airport commissioners called for a report on the problem, but it hasn't been submitted to them yet, even though four months have passed. Airports Executive Director Jack Driscoll said Tuesday they are still working on the ``legal analysis.''

``We've got to take this thing apart and see if the policy is even binding at all,'' Driscoll said.

Leaders of homeowner groups near the airport said they would fight to get the policy enforced.

``I think they've been backed in to a corner,'' said Schultz. ``I don't think they ever really expected anyone to pay attention to that old policy. They got caught.''

The issue has gained in importance because while it is being studied, a federal process to study noise issues at the airport is being held in abeyance. The delay has irked some powerful City Council members.

``In these past two months I have heard nothing from your office which encourages me to think that any significant progress is being made on this issue, other than that the Department of Airports' senior city attorney is `working on it,' '' Councilwoman Laura Chick, wrote to Driscoll in an April 24 letter. ``This issue must be resolved and resolved quickly.''