A slate of new hangars for private planes are coming to John Wayne Airport, but Orange County Supervisors were split over how the company behind them plans to pay for the $120 million expansion \u2013 private bonds.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Under the proposal approved by supervisors on Tuesday morning, private plane company Clay Lacy Aviation will build three new hangars at the airport and a customer terminal building, all of which will ultimately be owned by the county.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the county government itself won\u2019t be able to use the space until at least 2055 when Clay Lacy\u2019s lease ends, aside from a small area of the project dedicated to the OC Sheriff\u2019s Department.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The project is being funded by a private, tax-exempt bond, meaning the county government is not on the hook for the $120 million, but they do have to sign off on it being issued.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Supervisor Don Wagner called it \u201ccrony capitalism\u201d designed to give the bond\u2019s investors a tax loophole because their profits from the bond won\u2019t be taxed, raising concerns they could be pushed into doing similar deals in the future if they approved this one.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTaxpayers end up hurt in that those folks are no longer sharing the same tax burden,\u201d Wagner said at Tuesday\u2019s meeting. \u201cWe are a government agency, we should not be giving out our power to private entities and favoring them, whoever the private entity is.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scott Cutshall, the company\u2019s president of real estate and sustainability, pushed back on Wagner\u2019s vision of the deal as a \u201cmischaracterization\u201d in a statement on Tuesday, criticizing him for not taking any meetings on the project.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe use of private activity bonds \u2014 which are 100% private debt repaid solely by Clay Lacy, with no taxpayer money involved \u2014 is a win for the County and the taxpayers,\u201d Cutshall wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clay Lacy heavily lobbied county leaders to help get their contract through, hiring four lobbyists including former county Supervisor Lisa Bartlett, according to county disclosures.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Supervisors Katrina Foley and Vicente Sarmiento both came out in support of the project, with Foley noting that it wouldn\u2019t cost taxpayers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNone of these private equity bonds will utilize any taxpayer funds,\u201d Foley said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Foley received $2,200 from Clay Lacy during her last campaign in 2022, along with another $750 from Jeff Corless, one of the company\u2019s contracted lobbyists, according to campaign finance disclosures.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
She also received another $2,200 from Cutshall directly in the lead up to the 2022 election, along with another $849 spread across 2024 and 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarmiento also directly disagreed with Wagner, saying he wouldn\u2019t support \u201cbig corporate entities that take advantage of public funds.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis doesn\u2019t appear to be that,\u201d Sarmiento said. \u201cThis is an investment in a county asset.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sarmiento received $250 from Corless, and his campaign finance disclosures don\u2019t show any donations directly from Clay Lacy or executives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Supervisor Doug Chaffee ultimately gave the project the third vote it needed to pass, highlighting the benefits to the sheriff\u2019s department.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Supervisor Janet Nguyen abstained from the vote and didn\u2019t comment on the project.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org. <\/p>\n
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