The Walnut City Council tonight will consider offering its support of the transfer of LA/Ontario International Airport to local control.

The city of Ontario is looking for backers of its push to get local control of the airport, citing a loss in passenger traffic and revenue, according to the staff report. The cities of Pomona, Long Beach and Inglewood have signaled support for Ontario’s efforts, along with the Southern California Association of Governments, the League of California Cities, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. A similar resolution is on the City of Industry’s Council agenda for consideration Thursday.

Airports in Burbank, Orange County, Long Beach, and Palm Springs all are operated locally. Los Angeles World Airports runs Ontario Airport under a joint agreement signed in 1967.

Ontario officials have offered up a $250 million package, including an initial $50 million payment, to Los Angeles to gain transfer title and operations of the airport, reported the Daily Bulletin. Under the proposal, Ontario would be responsible for all outstanding debt, financial obligation and liabilities, the newspaper reported.

In the past four years, the Ontario Airport has lost more than a third of its passenger traffic, which has cost the Inland Empire region $500 million annually and 9,250 jobs, according to officials. The number of domestic and non-stop flights offered at the airport has dropped almost 57 percent since 2007. 

The Ontario Airport also has the highest cost per in-plane passenger than any other facility of similar size in the nation, officials said, adding that the result has been nearly two million travelers living in the region flying out of LAX instead.

LAX also has had its own woes, which has affected Ontario as well. Since 2001, LAX has gone from the third busiest airport in the world to the seventh, according to the Set Ontario Free website. The number of passengers LAX served in 2009 was 56.5 million, a loss of 5.9 million since 2007 and 10.8 million since 2000, according to the website.

Ontario officials said in the recovery plan that they understand that Los Angeles World Airports needs to bolster LAX traffic, and that makes the transfer of control all the more critical.

“Returning ONT to local control will also promote airport regionalization, a key initiative of Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa,” officials stated in the report. “Regional airports in Southern California under local control have rebounded from 9/11 and weathered the recessionary economy.”

The Walnut City Council meets at 7 p.m. tonight at City Hall.