¹Below is the full text of a letter we received from Ryan McMullan, the Senior Manager for Noise Programs in response to our concerns about the 2024-04 Sound Insulation Repair and Replacement Pilot Program.

If you've been following along, in May, the Port began an 'assessment' phase to last until December 31. This is supposedly to determine the extent of the problems, what specific problems would be addressed and which homes go first. They sent out 3,200 Surveys, which we found odd because that number represents only a third of the total number of homes that have received Port Packages since 1985. We believe Mr. McMullan's letter confirms what we've been worried about all along:

These 3,200 homes, representing only fifteen percent of the population that originally received sound insulation, are likely the only residents that will be considered eligible for a Port Package Update.

Background

When the surveys were mailed out, we polled our membership and quickly realized that the Port was 'pre-filtering', only sending out surveys to homes that they believe would be eligible for FAA reimbursement if the home were to receive a first-time Port Package today. And that means the current DNL65, the 'noise boundary',

The DNL65 (again the 'noise boundary') is determined by a Part 150 Study.

The 1993 Part 150 (green) was completed before the Third Runway and provided eligibility for 67,000 residents. Here it is depicted in green. That is why 9,400 homes received sound insulation.

However, the last one (orange), done in 2013, reduced the list of people living inside the DNL65 to 9,712. Or 3,200 homes.

Again: It's not only one third the homes. Over 85% of the people living in homes that received Port Packages would now be considered ineligible for sound insulation today. And less than 15% of those residents are being assessed for an update program.

Other problems

In addition to the DNL65, there are other problems with the assessment phase. We feel that the survey itself is highly problematic. We completely disagree with Mr. McMullan's claim that this survey will accurately represent the full range of Port Package fails. Many of the questions are biased, misleading or just plain wrong (such as one question which insists that condensation--between the panes-- can be 'wiped away'!) This makes us question whether or not Mr. McMullan, or any member of Port Staff, have even seen these homes.

We're also concerned that the assessment process is limited to acoustic testing of 30 homes.  Acoustic testing was not a prerequisite for the original Port Packages. One was considered noise-impacted simply by virtue of being inside the DNL65. Adding an acoustic testing provision seems like yet another way to exclude as many homes as possible.

Other People's Money

We believe this is not only unfair, it does and in fact go against the intent of the State of Washington and the Federal government. The Port received $1M in State funding specifically for this assessment phase. They also received $3M from an FAA grant--also for the assessment phase. Neither grant is limited to the current DNL65. And in fact, both State and Federal lawmakers assumed that all homeowners would at least be evaluated. We are asking both the State and Senator Murray's office to look into this.

What should really matter: Severity and Longevity

In our view the only criteria that should matter for updates are: severity and longevity. The severity of the issues you are experiencing and the length of time you've been dealing with them. In the example at left the homeowner first documented a complaint with the Port of Seattle twenty years ago. That home is now outside the DNL65. That home should go to the head of the line.

That is true equity. And it is also the only way to ever get the FAA to expand the DNL65 to include more homes. If airports like Sea-Tac are unwilling even to assess less than fifteen percent of its inventory. why should Congress ever take this issue seriously?

Action Item

We ask you to write the Port of Seattle Commission (commission-public-records@portseattle.org) today and insist that they make a clear statement on Port Package Updates:

• All homes that previously received Port Packages will be eligible for the SIRRPP.
• And all those homes will be evaluated based on severity and longevity.
• Members of Sea-Tac Noise.Info will invited to help improve the assessment phase to insure that that all affected homeowner's are properly heard.

Help us fix the program to fix your Port Package!

¹The full text of Mr. McMullan's letter.

Including only a third of the homes is not the half of it

As we've been reporting, the Port Package Update program, now called the Sound Insulation Repair/Replacement Pilot Program has had pitfalls at every turn.

The most obvious concern we had is that the survey was sent to 3,200 homes, which is only a third of the single family homes that have received sound insulation. Why that particular number? At this week's Part 150 Workshops, Port staff seemed unsure as to the reasoning, but at least two officials suggested that it may be because those are the only homes the Port will consider for any update program.

Port Packages and Part 150

One official suggested that this may be because the noise boundary (known as the DNL65) has shrunk dramatically since the original Port Packages were installed. That is one of the main purposes of a Part 150 Study--it sets the boundary. If your home is inside, you may be eligible for sound insulation. If not? Tough.

The Survey

As to the actual survey ( Sound Insulation Repair/Replace Pilot Program Survey 2024), we have several concerns. Here are a few examples of questions:

[gallery size="full" link="file" columns="1" ids="21034,21033,21032,21030,21029,21028"]

Many of the symptoms we've documented hundreds of times through in-home visits are not listed in the survey.

These include:

• Cracked windows due to vibration
• Poor ventilation
• Poor insulation in walls and ceiling
• Structural issues due to water damage from poor installation

Failing to include these options leads to a form of bias that can be easily exploited, namely: people only tend to answer the questions on the form. It puts the onus on the homeowner to understand their issues fully.

One question mistakenly depicts condensation on the window panes...

Rather than the much more common issue of condensation between the window panes, which you cannot 'wipe away'!

Several of the questions have nothing to do with the condition of the home

They are instead based on the people currently living there. These include questions regarding income, age, race, and ethnicity. These could be useful if there were plans for further outreach. But since that is not on the current timeline, we're concerned, because in our view the only criteria which should matter are:

1. The seriousness of the issues with the home.
2. Is the current homeowner the homeowner who received the Port Package. This cohort has been living with these issues for many years, who have previous complained and gotten nowhere, should be prioritized.

Any other criteria should be scored much lower, or not at all because the purpose of mitigation is to protect the neighborhood, not the homeowner. It was a failure to make that clear in the original mitigation that led to so much confusion. We are sensitive to notions of equity, however, it is simply a fact that, using the Port of Seattle's own Equity Index, every home inside the DNL65 already has the highest possible score!

 One question asks if the homeowner would like to participate in an on-site visit

The only answer should be yes because only with an on-site inspection can the full range of issues be assessed. However, since the Port has already announced that only thirty homes will receive such a visit, we see no point in asking. Given the survey design, we see no way to obtain a useful cross-section of all the issues we've documented with any set of 30 responses.

Call To Action

Of the $10.5 million allocated for the program, over half is for this assessment phase. From what we can see, that consists of 3,200 postcards, 3,200 surveys, followed by only thirty actual site visits before the final report to the Commission by December 31, 2024. This is unacceptable.

1. Write the Port of Seattle SEARepairReplacePilot@portseattle.org and insist that they provide clear answers to all these questions.
   • Why only 3,200 surveys?
   • What are the real criteria for eligibility?
   • Will homes outside the current DNL65 be eligible for this update program?
2. If you have not received a survey, call the Port Noise Office  (206) 787-6793 or email them SEARepairReplacePilot@portseattle.org immediately and insist on receiving one. If they refuse, ask for a written explanation in writing.

The survey closes on June 28 so do it today!

Let's fix the program to get your Port Package fixed.