Government

Fed up with noise, angry East Enders are calling for action

Teresa McCaskie, of Mattituck, called for the shut down of East Hampton airport if a solution to noise couldn't be reached. (Jennifer Gustavson photo)
Teresa McCaskie, of Mattituck, called for the shut down of East Hampton airport if a solution to noise couldn’t be reached. (Jennifer Gustavson photo)

ROUTES

Mr. Russell has advocated for an all-water route, which would require helicopters to fly around Orient Point to reach East Hampton.

Currently, helicopters pilots are required to use what’s known as the North Shore Route. Instituted in 2012, that mandate was intended to direct flight traffic over Long Island Sound rather than over homes along the North Fork and western Suffolk and Nassau counties. Mr. Russell said loopholes have made those limitations moot for North Fork residents. Pilots can deviate from the requirements for safety reasons, such as weather conditions, or in order to reach a destination or point of landing.

Due to FAA and JFK Airport airspace regulations, helicopter access to a southerly Long Island route, over the Atlantic Ocean, is very limited and not often used, Mr. Russell noted.

“No pilot should have the right to fly over Mattituck High School,” said Teresa McCaskie of Mattituck, who has been advocating against helicopter noise for years and attended the Southold forum. ”No student, teacher or faculty member should be at risk because of some pilot’s quote-unquote choice to take the shortest route to get to and from East Hampton Airport. It should be changed so all pilots must fly around Orient Point.

“If none of these things can be put in place then I push that the airport should be shut down completely,” Ms. McCaskie said.

The crowd’s anger in Southold intensified as regional FAA representatives who had showed up for the event fielded public questions by responding, “I don’t remember,” “Don’t quote me on that” and “I don’t think anyone can answer that.”

“What are you doing here?” one audience member yelled out.

Speakers at Monday’s event included Adam Santiago of Congressman Tim Bishop’s office; Kyle Strober of Senator Charles Schumer’s Long Island office and Debbie Tinnirello of Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s Long Island office.

The elected leaders’ representatives each spoke to the crowd for a few minutes, promising that their concerns are being addressed.

Local pilot Joseph Fischetti was also invited as a speaker. County and state officials also attended.

Many at the Shelter Island and Brigehampton forums argued that the routing issue is irrelevant, since East Hampton Airport is landlocked and some communities would have to be affected by noise no matter what.

As Assemblyman Fred Thiele (I-Sag Harbor) said at the Shelter Island meeting, “If you squeeze a balloon, the air has to escape somewhere.

Mr. Bishop said at the Bridgehampton meeting that negotiations with the FAA about routes were ongoing and that he and Sen. Schumer will be meeting with federal officials next week.

PETER REICH PHOTO | Kathleen Cunningham of the Quiet Skies Coalition  standing at right, addressing a packed Town Hall meeting room yesterday.
Kathleen Cunningham of the Quiet Skies Coalition, standing at right, addressing a packed Shelter Island Town Hall meeting room this week. (Credit: Peter Reich)

‘READY FOR WAR’

The consensus at the Bridgehampton meeting was that a strong policy restricting flights and aircraft size was the solution.

But Mr. Thiele noted at the Shelter Island work session that if that tack is taken, get ready “for war,” since aircraft service companies are already preparing to sue if restrictions are imposed on them and have been stocking a war chest for potential litigation.

Several people in Bridgehampton noted that the companies’ strategy in a suit against East Hampton would be based on violating free trade statutes. But Ms. Cunningham said a solid defense for residents would be provided by a noise assessment study, already in the works, showing the negative health and environmental impacts on the community, as well as the loss of property values, created by the constant din from low-flying aircraft, which is turning a once-desirable area for vacation and second-home owners into a nightmare of noise.

At the Shelter Island work session, Mr. Dougherty noted that residents could use a constitutional gambit of “an unjust taking of property without compensation” since the aircraft services are seriously depressing property values. It was important to register complaints for a permanent record for a court case, several people advised, and also to pack the East Hampton Town Board meeting as another piece of evidence that communities are responding to a crisis.

“Everyone here wants this stopped,” said Margret Skabry of Peconic, who attended Southold’s meeting and scolded federal representatives in attendance. “You need to take hold of the dragon — the Federal Aviation Administration.”

“We wanted to create a town committee,” Mr. Russell said. “Well, I don’t need five to seven people; I need 500 to 700 people.

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