Los Angeles International Airport

Officials intend to unveil today a plan to increase by 60% the number of travelers passing through Los Angeles International Airport by 2015--an expansion designed to maintain the city's preeminent position as a West Coast hub for tourism, travel and trade. The announcement is the first definitive step toward the most ambitious expansion of LAX since the 1984 Olympics, but the blueprint is fraught with political and financial dilemmas that could take years to resolve.

The Los Angeles City Council agreed Friday to spend up to $25,000 hiring a private attorney to help investigate the payment of $24,500 in 1994 to Webster L. Hubbell for lobbying on behalf of the airport. Hubbell, who is serving prison time for bilking clients of more than $400,000 at the Rose law firm in Little Rock, Ark., was hired by then-Airport Commission President Ted Stein, who is now running for city attorney.

In another potential blow to the beleaguered subway project, MTA officials reported Friday that the federal government has threatened to take back $31 million from the agency to penalize Los Angeles for diverting airport funds into the city treasury. Metropolitan Transportation Authority board members were advised by their staff that U.S. Transportation Secretary Federico Pena is "very likely" to take back the $31 million in subway construction funds.

The federal government Monday renewed its threat to strip Los Angeles of all transportation-related funding unless the city general fund returns $31 million in disputed funds to Los Angeles International Airport.

Construction will begin early next year on a municipal courthouse near Los Angeles International Airport. The courthouse was originally supposed to be built at Aviation Boulevard and 111th Street, but the airport bought that property to expand its air cargo operations. A new location was found on La Cienga Boulevard just south of the Century Freeway in the unincorporated area of Del Aire, located between El Segundo and Hawthorne.

Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, City Council members and federal aviation officials offered generally bullish assessments of a plan released Friday to expand Los Angeles International Airport and accommodate an additional 35 million annual travelers by 2015.

Lava lamps shaped like flying saucers dot the counters. Walls that look like the moon's surface bracket the room. And red chairs that look like floating cushions hover in front of the bar. The intergalactic decor seems only fitting for a world-famous building that resembles a giant spaceship squatting in the middle of Los Angeles International Airport. After being closed for more than a year, the former Theme Room Restaurant at LAX is reopening Dec.

Just because you have a plane ticket for a seat to a foreign country, don't assume the deal includes a seat in the terminal to wait for your flight. Opened in 1984 when only 6.8 million passengers passed through its halls per year, the Tom Bradley International Terminal at the L.A. airport now accommodates about 10 million passengers annually. Just walk into the departure hall and the problem is evident.

The culinary takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport is finally gaining altitude, with a group of new outlets opening this week at Shuttle by United's Terminal 8 and a flashy mezzanine food court built around a waterfall nearing completion in the Bradley International Terminal. Many of LAX's new restaurants are opening months behind schedule, but some--including two Wolfgang Puck Express outlets, a Rhino Chasers beer bar and Creative Croissants--are in place.

A Southwest Airlines flight bound for Salt Lake City returned safely Tuesday night to Los Angeles International Airport after receiving a bomb threat, police said. A caller phoned the Southwest reservation counter in Little Rock, Ark., at 8:10 p.m. PDT, about half an hour after takeoff from Los Angeles, stating that a bomb placed aboard the flight would explode in 30 minutes, Officer Mike Partain said.