Category : Correspondence(303)

In a June 2018 email, acoustics consultant Ben Sharp contacts Sharyn Ward, former manager of King County's Sound Insulation (SI) program, while researching aging airport sound insulation treatments for an FAA report responding to a Congressional inquiry. Sharp notes that SFO is the only airport he has found planning a replacement/repair program for homeowners within the DNL 65 noise contour, funded without FAA assistance. He specifically asks Ward about known aging problems with windows installed during the early years of the Sea-Tac (SEA) sound insulation program, noting that the program is not currently planning to offer any assistance to affected homeowners.

In June 2018, the Port of Seattle notified the cities of SeaTac, Burien, and Des Moines that its single-family sound insulation program would resume that summer for eligible homeowners near Sea-Tac Airport. The Port's program manager, C&S Engineers, requested meetings with city staff to review local building and construction inspection practices. In response, Burien City Manager Brian Wilson designated Community Development Director Chip Davis as the city's primary contact for the program.

In a March 2018 letter to the Puget Sound Regional Council, the City of Des Moines, Washington, expressed concerns about the disproportionate noise, air quality, and health impacts that SeaTac Airport's rapid growth places on nearby residents. The city urged that Vision 2050's environmental review include a serious evaluation of siting a second major commercial airport in western Washington to relieve capacity pressure on SeaTac. It also called for multi-modal transportation solutions and thorough analysis of jet fuel emissions and other environmental impacts as part of regional aviation planning.

In a January 2018 letter to the Puget Sound Regional Council, Des Moines Mayor Matt Pina raised concerns about the disproportionate noise, air quality, and environmental burdens placed on Des Moines residents by Seattle-Tacoma International Airport's rapid growth, arguing these impacts are inadequately addressed in the Draft Regional Transportation Plan. The city called for sustainability, human health, and community impacts to be central factors in any decision to expand SeaTac's capacity or site a new regional airport. The letter also requested that the plan include discussion of a potential passenger ferry terminal in Des Moines as a multi-modal transportation alternative.

In January 2018, EPA project lead Sabrina Johnson notified partners that the Near-port Community Capacity Building Pilot Project deadline was extended from June to September 30, 2018. The extension was granted to better address project partners' concerns and support more durable outcomes, while still encouraging participants to maintain an expeditious pace. Capacity building under this EPA initiative focuses on improving conditions and removing barriers to effective community functioning near port areas.

In an October 2017 email to Burien City Council members, resident Sharyn Parker critiques a letter from Port of Seattle Chairman Tom Albro defending Sea-Tac Airport's expansion and noise mitigation efforts. She argues that Albro's response fails to address the real-world impacts of rapidly increasing flight operations—including a 9% annual average flight increase—on surrounding communities, and that the Port's noise modeling data is outdated and understates actual activity by 51%. Parker calls on the Council to challenge what she characterizes as the Port's lack of candor and possible intentional underestimation of flight projections to avoid costly noise and air quality mitigation requirements.