Deciding who gets fixed, first is key to the success of the new pilot program
The Port of Seattle pilot program created by Order 24-04, will attempt to assess all 9,400+ homes in order to determine which systems are eligible and how they should be prioritized. It seems there are two primary components: equipment and equity. Put another way, the criteria for each home and the criteria for each homeowner.
The equipment
When it comes to the actual sound insulation system, there must be a ‘worthiness floor’, a relatively objective set of problems for determining whether a home qualifies for repair or replacement. It is not perfect, but we recommend the San Francisco International Airport Repair/Replacement model because it makes no mention of acoustic testing, which is expensive and requires specialized training. And since acoustic testing was not a requirement for the original Port Package, we see no reason to make the standard higher for an update. If the Package is damaged, it should be eligible.
One can then score certain homes higher or lower based on severity. But there must be a clear floor, otherwise the process will appear arbitrary.
Circumstances
Beyond the equipment, the question comes down to the people living in each home. We can start with the Port’s own Equity Index, which we like. However, for this project we will suggest a few additional items.
The Equity Index
Using the Port’s own Equity Index tool, almost the entire DNL65 is already at the lowest possible score. Interestingly the only areas that ranks at the second lowest is North SeaTac Park, an uninhabited forest. But every neighborhood, where people live and have Port Packages, score at the lowest possible rank. We think this is actually ‘good’ news. Since everybody qualifies, deciding qualification by demographics becomes far less subjective.
Other priorities
We suggest adding three other factors to your rubric
Original Homeowners
People who signed their Avigation Easement still in the same home should be a higher weighted score. These people are (now) senior citizens who have been putting up with any number of symptoms for a very long time. This subset largely intersects
Logged Complaints
On a related topic, four years ago we requested, but did not receive a list of the homes where someone has complained directly to the Port about their sound insulation systems. We ask that you expedite that list now. This is not about blame or shame. Homeowners would likely complain to the Port after attempting to obtain relief from the contractor or manufacturer.
We feel that any home (regardless of current owner) where there is documented evidence that the original homeowner raised concerns and learned they could not obtain relief, should score higher–especially if their complaint was within the warranty period.
Equal distribution between cities
One does not need to do a deep analysis to realize that there are plenty of problems in all *three cities (Burien, Des Moines, SeaTac). Therefore we feel it would be best (at least in the beginning) to do an equal number of repairs in each city. For example, if the Port allocates ($x) for repair/replacement in 2025, then ($x/3) homes should be addressed in Burien, Des Moines, and SeaTac.
As more homes are completed, and more data is gathered as to specific ‘hot spots’, a more granular approach might be advisable. But in the beginning, it will create much more buy-in from the entire airport communities if they can see that all three cities are obtaining at least some relief.
Summary
It is fair and just to use some form scoring system based on both the home and the people in the home. We also want to balance the cost of the assessment to maximize the speed of deployment.
Our solution might go something like this
- Budget for 60 Port Packages, allocating 20 to Burien, 20 to Des Moines, 20 to Seatac.
- Develop a web-based intake form and an initial outreach program.
- Begin taking applications from the community and inspecting and those applications.
- After a certain period, select 60 homes to be worked on
- Continue the intake and inspection process to complete the assessment/inventory for when the next round of financing comes on line.
*Actually, there are a few dozen homes with Port Packages in Kent.