The Des Moines Chapter of the National Quiet Skies Coalition has written a letter to Des Moines City Manager Michael Matthias, with copies to the Des Moines City Council, seeking answers to “Twenty Questions” which they will present at their upcoming community forum on Wednesday, April 26.
The free, public and open forum will be held at Mt. Rainier High School, starting at 6:30 p.m.
“We appreciated that the City posted a statement on its website last month,” Quiet Skies member Steve Edmiston said. “However, that statement raised more questions about what the City is doing, or not doing, with respect to new fight paths over the City and related noise, the FAA’s NextGen flight procedures, and the negative impacts of Airport operations on human health and the environment. Unfortunately, unlike other SeaTac neighbor cities, Des Moines doesn’t have a committee or task force to address the issues – effectively, we don’t have a means to have a conversation with our City.” [Download PDF of ‘Twenty Questions’ here]
In an attempt to facilitate such community conversation, Quiet Skies Puget Sound (“QSPS”) will be holding a forum on April 26, 2017, at 6:30 p.m., at Mt. Rainier High School, to discuss the new fight paths, related noise, the status of NextGen flight procedures, and the overall impacts on human health and the environment [download PDF of flier here].
As reported here previously, QSPS has invited the Des Moines City Council to attend the forum and participate in a question and answer session. The group has not received a confirmation from any member of the Council.
“We sent the letter two weeks ago, and read the letter aloud during the March 23rd Council meeting,” said QSPS founder Sheila Brush [download PDF of letter here]. “We also had a productive phone call about the forum with the City Manager and City Attorney Tim George last week, but we have not received any confirmations.”
The 20 questions are a way to help the City and its residents get on the same page. “We wanted to provide the City a clear understanding of questions we have, and that we believe many Des Moines residents have, for the Council. If we receive answers to these questions before the forum, it should really help focus the discussion,” said Edmiston.
QSPS also announced this week that the Burien Quiet Skies Coalition has agreed to co-sponsor the forum. Further, QSPS announced three speakers for the forum: Jeff Davis, Oregon-based founder of Aviation Impact Reform and a former air traffic controller; Debi Wagner, Burien City Council Member and author of “Over My Head” (a story of citizen activism and airport expansion), and Steve Edmiston, attorney, filmmaker, local historian, and a QSPS member.
Quiet Skies Puget Sound is the 29th chapter of the National Quiet Skies Coalition.
The Des Moines group works with citizen groups all over the Puget Sound region, including the Burien Quiet Skies Coalition.]]>
The flights are relentless these days. The noise is constant. The big warehouses being built for cargo and shipping are signs of trouble for residents. Sea-Tac Airport will keep growing unless the community starts insisting on seeking out alternatives like another regional airport. If you aren’t concerned about the impacts to you and your family’s health, then concern yourself with the decreased property values and poor returns on your investments if you own in the area. The communities will be destined to provide housing for those who can’t afford to live elsewhere because the rest of King County is beyond affordable. Look at the big picture of what the expansion of Sea-Tac Airport and the 509 completion will do to your quality of life. We are being sacrificed for the greed and financial gain of the Port of Seattle. The residents are stakeholders and they need to attend this meeting to learn about the consequences and impacts to the surrounding communities.
I hope the city is open to the concerns many in the community have about the health issues caused by excessive noise and poor air quality. Our city government needs to understand these compounded health hazards have serious impacts on their citizens . A win/win partnership with Sea-Tac is achievable without compromising the health of thousands. Invite your neighbors and come gather information.