DATE: Wednesday, October 22, 1997           TAG: 9710220537

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JOHN MURPHY, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: HAVELOCK, N.C.                    LENGTH:   89 lines

N.C. TOWN LOBBIES NAVY TO SEND ITS HORNETS THERE

The truth about where the Navy should send its F/A-18 Hornets is all in the numbers, residents of this small coastal community say.

If the jets go to Virginia Beach, it would put 23 schools in high-noise zones. In Havelock, home of Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station, there would be just three.

``One can only wonder at how significantly these jets will impact their land, air quality and traffic use. The increase in noise alone is a seemingly insurmountable problem,'' read Deborah Marm, of U.S. Rep. Walter B. Jones' office, from a letter written by the congressman.

``Oceana is in a built-up urban area. Cherry Point is in a rural area. The jets should be shared . . . It just makes common sense,'' said David Jones, a military liaison sent by North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt's office.

In Havelock, the jets will be welcome, offered North Carolina state Rep. John Nichols.

``You won't have people who will complain about noise here,'' said Nichols, a Republican who represents Havelock.

These were some of the comments heard by Navy officials Tuesday during one of a series of public hearings on the Navy's plans to transfer 180 Hornets from the soon-to-close Cecil Field Naval Air Station. About 75 people showed up in the Havelock Middle School gymnasium; of them, 25 spoke, and none opposed bringing the jets to North Carolina.

Last month, the Navy released a draft Environmental Impact Statement on the jets The EIS concluded that the best option would be to send them all to Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach. The hearings are part of the impact study process to take comments before a final statement is issued.

If all the jets are moved to Oceana, it will mean an additional 5,600 military and civilian employees, which would inject about $226 million more into the Hampton Roads economy. In addition, there would be $94 million in new construction projects, which are expected to add 1,190 private sector jobs.

But the additional jets would also put nearly 39,000 more Hampton Roads residents and 23 schools in high noise or potential accident zones.

Tuesday, residents and city officials of Havelock argued their city could accommodate the jets because of its size and willingness to support the military.

That would not be true in Virginia Beach, some said.

``They can't handle it. You are going to have a lot of resentment up there,'' said Fred Jerett, a local developer who purchased 150 home-building lots in hopes that relocated Navy personnel and their families would move to Havelock.

Havelock, which over the past 30 years has grown from 3,500 to more than 23,000 residents, has developed backup plans should the decision not be changed.

``We don't like to think of them not coming here, but everyone is realistic,'' said Bonnie Whiting, executive director of the Havelock Chamber of Commerce. ``The decision is not made at our level. . . . It's made far above us.''

Whiting cited an aeronautical institute, planned for Havelock, that will train military retirees and vocational students to repair aircraft. Many of the students will be employed at the air base, she said.

A tourism center is also in the works. Glossy visitors brochures boast that beaches are nearby, and that there are shady woods, golf courses, historic homes, fine dining and other attractions in the area.

Still, Havelock has a lot to gain if the Navy decides to send some of the jets to Cherry Point.

In a best-case scenario for the city, Cherry Point would land 60 F/A-18s along with 1,300 military and civilian employees. That would provide $1 million in tax revenues and $67 million in construction contracts, according to Navy figures.

The Marine Corps Air Station, built in 1941, houses the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and the Naval Aviation Depot (NADEP). Cherry Point's total economic impact was $615 million last year, according to Havelock officials.

In 1993, the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission recommended that Cherry Point get at least some of the jets. Havelock officials responded by spending millions of dollars to gear up for their arrival, including spending $5.8 million to upgrade a wastewater treatment plant and floating a bond for a new middle school.

But two years later, a different base closure panel decided to send all the planes to Oceana.

North Carolina officials have since been fighting to change that decision.

Tuesday's public hearing is one of six scheduled in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. The next will be held tonight in Bayboro, N.C. The Navy will hold two public hearings in South Hampton Roads: Monday, Oct. 27, at Virginia Beach Pavilion Convention Center and Tuesday, Oct. 28, at Butts Road Intermediate School, Chesapeake. Both hearings will begin with an open information period from 3:30 to 7 p.m. followed by the formal hearing from 7:30 to 10 p.m. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

F/A-18 Hornet KEYWORDS: U.S.NAVY PLANE HORNET RELOCATION

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