BIG TURNOUT BACKS ROAR 11,096 VOTERS SUPPORT RESTRICTIONS ON AIRPORT.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

BURBANK - With the highest voter turnout in a municipal election in 20 years, local residents overwhelmingly passed Measure A - a controversial initiative to limit growth at Burbank Airport, according to unofficial results Tuesday.

The City Clerk's Office said 19,092 residents cast ballots in the city's first ever mail-in special election, with 11,096, or 58 percent, voting for Measure A and 7,949, or 42 percent, against.

A few dozen ballots were disqualified, and an additional 400 ballots have yet to be counted because voter signatures are pending verification, officials said. A final official tally is expected Friday.

``I am ready to pop. I am so excited,'' said Howard Rothenbach, chairman of Restore Our Airport Rights, the initiative proponent. ``We have known all along the public is on our side. This will send an even louder message that the people of Burbank cannot be ignored on this airport issue.''

However, critics, led by Taxpayers Against Measure A, say the initiative has legal flaws that will result in costly taxpayer-funded litigation.

``Sooner or later someone will challenge it,'' said airport commissioner Charles Lombardo. ``If people had read the legal analysis, they would have voted against it when they see the potential complications.''

Touted as a guarantee against further degradation of local quality of life by airport noise and pollution, Measure A calls for any proposed terminal plan at Burbank Airport to include an overnight curfew and a cap on the number of flights.

It also mandates two-thirds voter approval before the city could consent to the airport building a new terminal.

City Attorney Dennis Barlow has questioned whether it's against state or federal laws for an initiative to restrict airport operations and mandate voter approval for plans.

City Manager Robert ``Bud'' Ovrom fears that if the initiative does end up in court, it would unravel a 1999 court victory that requires the airport to get city permission to buy land for building a terminal.

``We expect (the ROAR initiative) will be overturned by the court. That doesn't bother me as much as, if in the course of litigation, we overturn the victories we have already gained,'' he said.

Ovrom added, ``I understand clearly that people want a curfew and cap. That's what they are voting for. The problem is I just don't think ROAR is going to be the vehicle to get them that. It's false hope.''

ROAR waged an aggressive campaign to get its message out through phone banks, fliers and precinct walks throughout the past two years.

Taxpayers Against Measure A belatedly organized in September. With its late start and small campaign chest, some political observers saw the opposition movement as marginal.

The election results broke the city record of 18,746 votes cast in a 1973 primary. They also mirrored the outcome on Measure B - a less-restrictive proposition that also guarantees Burbank voters veto power over any airport expansion plan. It is uncertain whether Measure A's passage supersedes Measure B.

The Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority has been struggling for years to build a new terminal to replace the existing facility, which is 70 years old and sits dangerously close to the runway.

Plans have stalled, as Burbank city officials and airport officials got entangled in a dozen lawsuits over the future of the airport. Currently, the Airport Authority is undertaking a noise study mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration to determine whether it can impose a curfew.

Late in September, the Airport Authority voted to put on hold indefinitely all terminal development plans because of financial repercussions resulting from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

With travelers jittery to fly and airlines slashing flights, the airport has estimated it will lose between $750,000 and $1 million in operating revenues in September alone, even as it struggles to meet new federal safety measures.