Letter to Acting Administrator Elwell - Gallego and Sinema urge FAA to increase community involvement in flight path discussions
Letter
Dear Acting Administrator Elwell:
We welcomed the recent decision in the lawsuit brought by the City of Phoenix and Phoenix neighborhood associations against the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which validated our long-held contention that the FAA acted improperly when it altered flight paths departing Sky Harbor International Airport without first soliciting input from the affected communities. Unfortunately, in implementing the agreement subsequently reached by the parties to this case, we fear that the FAA may be duplicating its past mistakes by failing to conduct adequate outreach to Phoenix-area residents.
As you know, the FAA intends to restore the pre-September 2014 departure procedures in Phoenix and will then consider new flight paths based on feedback from the public. To date, three events billed as "FAA Airspace Workshops" have been announced to collect public comments. Unfortunately, no such hearings are currently planned in either the historic districts that joined the suit against the FAA or in Central City South, the collection of neighborhoods that experienced the highest levels of aircraft noise prior to the changes in 2014.
Again, at that time, the FAA acted without consulting with members of the affected communities or local elected officials and -- before the federal court intervened -- stubbornly refused to take meaningful steps to address their concerns. We strongly believe that this record of indifference must not be replicated. To that end, we urge you to schedule additional meetings in Phoenix's historic neighborhoods and Central City South as well as other communities likely to experience significant changes in aircraft noise as a result of the return to the preexisting departure procedures. In addition, we strongly request that you consult closely with local elected officials and municipal staff in determining the timing, location, and format of these workshops.
Thank you for your attention to this request. We look forward to working with you to reduce the harmful impact of aircraft noise on Phoenix-area residents.
Sincerely,
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