Aug. 29--TRIAD -- Residents around Piedmont Triad International Airport should get a better idea next month about what they'll hear in years to come from aircraft flying over their homes.
A progress report will be released in early September on how airport officials might lessen the impact of noise from FedEx Corp. cargo hub planes that should begin late-night and early-morning flights by 2009.
Since the early part of last year, three advisory committees to the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority have worked with consultants to develop ideas on addressing the potential impact of aircraft noise on homes around PTIA.
A progress report that will be released next month examines in detail measures that could reduce the impact of noise, said lead consultant Andy Harris, an aviation noise analyst from Manchester, Mass.
The report includes developing a plan for runway use and "refinements of where the planes fly" to lessen the noise impact on neighborhoods, Harris said.
The report also will include details on how many homes could be bought out or soundproofed, he said.
A copy of the report will be provided to members of the three advisory committees sometime during the week before their next meetings, which will take place Sept. 13 at the Greensboro Airport Marriott, Harris said.
At a public workshop from 7-8:30 p.m. Sept. 12 at Colfax Elementary School, the consultants will give an overall report on the noise study progress, he said.
The noise study should conclude next year with final recommendations to airport officials, who will have to develop a final plan for addressing noise concerns and mitigation. The city of High Point is in a wait-and-see posture as the noise study progresses.
City Planning Director Lee Burnette said High Point leaders two years ago approved a comprehensive land-use plan based on current projections of aircraft noise from FedEx cargo planes. FedEx is projected to have 126 departures and arrivals daily between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m. when the hub is fully operational, Federal Aviation Administration projections show.
Burnette said the outcome of the noise study, which should be completed next year, may prompt a reassessment depending on the recommendations.
"We've already put in a lot of land use changes and policies (for north High Point)," Burnette said. "If things go accordingly, I don't anticipate a significant change in land-use policy in the area because we've addressed a lot of those issues."
However, if the airport noise study leads to changes in flight patterns, the city might have to re-examine its land-use plans and development projections for north High Point, Burnette said.
Residential growth continues to progress in north High Point, he said. The city and Guilford County population in the area north of Skeet Club Road and west of N.C. 68 is expected to increase from 2,808 to approximately 6,500 when the residential areas are built out, the city projects.
A member of the citizens advisory committee said he remains hopeful about the noise study outcome. Committee members have been absorbing voluminous amounts of information, said Doug Dreyer, a construction company executive.
"I'm confident that we will be able to make some very good recommendations," he said.
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