Phoenix residents spoke out Thursday night against flight-path changes made by the Federal Aviation Administration that they say have increased neighborhood noise and negatively impacted their communities.
The meeting, held in the Phoenix City Council Chambers, gave residents the opportunity to speak directly with representatives from the FAA, the city of Phoenix and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
Many residents and community leaders said during the meeting that the changes, which the FAA said were made to help save fuel and address safety issues, have resulted in planes flying directly over their homes.
“We’re here to tell you our story,” said Michael Nowakowski, city councilman for District 7. “Our historic story.”
The new flight plans could hurt communities, said Ruth Ann Marston, Phoenix Elementary School District Governing Board president.
“Enough is enough,” Marston said.
The FAA instituted the changes on Sept. 18 as part of its Next Generation Air Transportation System plan, commonly called NextGen. NextGen was crafted with the intention of reducing fuel consumption and costs and improving the efficiency and safety of the national aviation system.
The new departure routes out of Sky Harbor take planes over the Grand Avenue corridor.
Glen Martin, who represented the FAA, said the organization was going to take the input of Phoenix residents seriously as it works to fine-tune NextGen.
“We do want to fully understand your concerns,” Martin said during the meeting.
Residents representing Phoenix neighborhoods said they were frustrated that the FAA and Sky Harbor did not notify them of the changes before they were implemented.
Patrick Neary, who lives just east of the Arizona State Fairgrounds and said he was affected by NextGen, said the timing of the flights over the neighborhoods have made it hard to sleep.
Others said they have seen their property values decrease because of it.
Neighborhoods impacted by NextGen include numerous historic neighborhoods near the Grand Avenue corridor. Some said the changes could jeopardize 50 years worth of work that many neighborhood groups had put in to revitalizing the area.
“At the end of the day, we worked really hard to rebuild our historic neighborhoods and have people move in to our areas and be part of our community,” said Laura Pastor, councilwoman for District 4.
Numerous speakers said the FAA had other options that it did not consider before it implemented NextGen.
The crowd supported many of the speakers with cheers and enthusiastic applause. Nowakowski said the meeting was an example of the impact of community unity and advocacy.
“I think tonight is a fine example of the power of people,” Nowakowski said after the meeting. “When people come together for a common cause, things happen.”
At the end of the meeting, Martin said those who spoke and shared comments with the FAA would be taken into consideration.
“We want you to know tonight’s input has been heard very clearly,” Martin said.
Sky Harbor will hear from the FAA in 30 days, said Deborah W. Ostreicher, the Deputy Aviation Director for the city of Phoenix.
Contact the reporter at agnel.philip@asu.edu
