Making a racket over aircraft noise in Five Towns

Residents of the Five Towns and other communities close to John F. Kennedy International Airport will have the chance to air their complaints about aircraft noise at a public workshop at the Radisson JFK Hotel in Jamaica on Wednesday, June 17, from 6 to 8 pm. 

The primary topic at the meeting will be the noise study that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey has been working on since the fall of 2013 in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration. 

The study monitors noise levels of aircraft arriving at and departing from JFK. It is intended to determine how that noise affects nearby residents’ quality of life over a period of three years. The research also includes LaGuardia and Newark Liberty airports, and is known in FAA parlance as a Part 150 study. 

Port Authority spokesman Ron Marsico said the goal for next week’s workshop is to inform the public about the study. It will feature displays with information about the study’s schedule and the methods used to measure and track aircraft noise. 

“The workshop will provide an overview of the Part 150 noise study and serve as an opportunity for the public to ask questions and gain information about the process,” Marsico said. “The Port Authority is hosting the workshop, but noise study consultants and FAA representatives will be there.”

“There will be one large general session at the beginning of the program, then people will split up to explore the stations,” explained Kendall Lampkin, executive director of the Town of Hempstead’s Town and Village Aircraft Safety and Noise Abatement Committee. “They will try to have five or six different stations, unveiling study plans as they occur. It will be structured like a museum exhibit.”

TVASNAC, which encompasses 12 Nassau County villages, is working to require the Port Authority and the FAA to implement procedures that reduce aircraft noise during takeoffs and landings at JFK and LaGuardia. It has challenged both agencies to improve   the quality of life for residents and homeowners.