Airplane Noise in Jackson Heights Draws Hundreds to Town Hall: DNAinfo

News article about the town hall on plane noise Senator Jose Perlata co-hosted in Jackson Heights, Queens. 

As reported by DNAinfo:

By Katie Honan

JACKSON HEIGHTS — Officials at a standing-room-only town hall about airplane noise said they'll install more monitors and try to speed up construction at aLaGuardia Airport runway to quiet plane noise on weekends.

Residents packed the auditorium of P.S. 69 on Sunday to vent frustration over the morning takeoffs and landings waking them up weekend mornings — sometimes as early as 5 a.m., according to State Sen. Jose Peralta. 

Representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration and the Port Authority were at the town hall and said they'd try to delay construction on the LaGuardia runway until after 9 a.m. on weekends, according to Peralta.

When that runway is out of commission, planes fly directly over Jackson Heights on Saturdays and Sundays, usually starting before sunrise, according to residents.

Officials also said they would install more noise monitors.

"We want to see how the noise is affecting our quality of life," Peralta said, adding that he wanted additional information about how air quality might be affected by plane exhaust.

Jackson Heights residents make the most complaints about airplane noise than any other neighborhood, logging thousands of calls and emails, records show. 

Those concerned about the upcoming multi-billion dollar renovation of LaGuardiawere told the change won't mean more planes, but just planes that can carry more people, the senator said.

The project is expected to be completed by 2021.