November 1, 1998 Naval station reuse plan   Richard Fine, the attorney for six Long Beach residents who continue to oppose the city's reuse plan for former Navy properties, wrote a letter (Oct. 25) about his client's ballot initiative. The letter is misleading and warrants a response. First, Mr. Fine asks the Press-Telegram why it is afraid to let the people decide the fate of the Naval complex. In fact, the people of Long Beach did decide the future of the naval complex. Between 1992 and 1996, more than 60 public meetings and hearings were held to get public input on the reuse plan. Reuse committees composed of prominent local citizens, including educators, engineers, former shipyard workers and a wide range of business people, reviewed all proposals and made recommendations to the City Council. The City Council, the duly elected representatives of all the people of Long Beach, unanimously approved the reuse recommendations of the reuse committees. Second, Mr. Fine states that redevelopment of the Naval complex will require "taxpayer monies." In fact, no taxpayer funds will be used to redevelop the station and shipyard. Funding will come from harbor revenue funds -- the money received primarily from shipping companies for the use of the port. Third, Mr. Fine's estimates of the cost of redevelopment are wildly exaggerated and have increased by over half a billion dollars in just one week. For example, he assumes that the city will have to pay $533 million for the property. Where he got this number is unclear, because the Navy has decided to give the property to the city for nothing, under what is known as a "port benefit conveyance." The marine terminals will not lose money, as Mr. Fine suggests. They will be profitable from day one, as the port demonstrated in papers filed with the court. The Port of Long Beach is the leading container port in the nation and a vital element in the economic revitalization of the city. All the container terminals in the port are in need of room to expand and several shipping companies are interested in leasing the former Navy properties. There has also been substantial interest in the commercial shipyard. The city's reuse plan has many aspects in addition to the shipping components. There is the Towne Center retail development, the SeaLaunch space delivery program, a Job Corps Center training facility, a university-related research park, a small business incubator and many new services to ensure that homeless and unemployed individuals have an opportunity to take advantage of new opportunities in trade, tourism, technology and retail industries. The city is well on its way to implementing all these elements of the reuse plan for the benefit of all the people of Long Beach. It is time to stop rehashing the past in the courts, as a small minority have been attempting, unsuccessfully, to do since 1996. James C. Hankla Long Beach City Manager