THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2008
New Runway Causing New Noise Problems
By TODD WESSELL
Journal & Topics Editor
"We're getting killed," said Park Ridge Mayor Howard Frimark Monday morning.
"We've had constant calls here at City Hall since Thursday morning."
What has Frimark and many Park Ridge residents so upset is the new overhead airplane traffic that's been rattling homes along a swath of central and southern Park Ridge. The disruption is a direct result of the opening last Thursday of O'Hare Airport's new northern runway that runs parallel to Touhy Avenue in Des Plaines. Frimark said that since the moment the new $460 million runway opened, planes have been rumbling over Park Ridge's Belle Plaine Avenue prompting complaints to be phoned in to City Hall from angry residents.
"The majority of complaints are about inbound planes from the east down the Belle Plaine corridor," explained Frimark. "It's the same problem that we experienced years ago when planes went over Lutheran General Hospital. It now seems like the traffic has moved over here. The planes are very noisy and they're very low. Neighbors are saying that the noise is relentless with one after another. There's no relief here."
Frimark said that after he heard the complaints, he called Brian Gilligan, executive director of the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission, which monitors aircraft noise activity at O'Hare and works on ways to reduce that noise. Frimark and Park Ridge Ald. Don Bach said they would attend the Tuesday meeting of the Noise Commission's Technical Committee in Mt. Prospect. There, discussion about the Park Ridge issue was discussed.
Bach echoed Frimark's comments. "The shift in traffic from the commissioning of the new runway is having a dramatic effect on the quality of life for the citizens of Park Ridge," he said. "Residents in the northern end of the city are likely to experience less aircraft noise, but homes in the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th wards will definitely hear more."
At the ONCC meeting this week, Bach and Frimark challenged the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the City of Chicago to provide concrete evidence that the 65-decibel noise threshold standard is accurate. Five new noise monitors have been placed in Park Ridge to provide evidence that this is the case, Bach said.
"We would also like some explanation of the reasoning behind 65db as the threshold of noise acceptability from the FAA," Bach added.
"I have received more than 450 calls from Park Ridge residents since the runway opened on Nov. 20. The city has received more than three times that number of calls. Most of the callers said they knew the change was coming, but they were unaware of the degree to which it would affect the quality of their lives."
Gilligan said that a few months ago, a new portable noise monitor was placed along the expected northern runway glide path. A permanent monitor will be put in place in the future. Readings will be used to determine the intensity of the noise and could be used to determine if noise relief measures can be implemented such as home soundproofing. Gilligan said that while the new runway now impacts an area east of O'Hare in Park Ridge, other areas in the city will see less noise.
For many years, Park Ridge was a strong critic of O'Hare Airport expansion, saying additional runways and construction will add to noise and pollution around the airport. In 2004, Park Ridge bolted from the anti-expansion Suburban O'Hare Commission and joined the O'Hare Noise Commission.
"We expected a small amount of noise," said Frimark. "I just got back from vacation and I could see one plane after another north of Maine South, which is Belle Plaine. And when I came to City Hall this morning (Monday) although it was very cloudy you could hear the planes and in some cases see them. I'm positive they were landing on the new runway."
Frimark said when people call City Hall to complain, they are directing the calls to the O'Hare Noise Complaint Hotline.