TagOris Dunham(10)

This document collection includes correspondence from 1981–1983 related to noise policy around Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) Airport. A February 1981 letter from PAC Chairman Oris Dunham to King County's Director of Planning urges the county to adopt and enforce building code sound insulation requirements — as called for in the Sea-Tac/Communities Plan adopted in 1976 — to protect nearby residents from aircraft noise. A January 1983 letter to the PAC Subcommittee on Organization outlines plans to develop a series of organizational alternatives for review at the March 23 Policy Advisory Committee meeting.

In a January 29, 1982 letter to the Port of Seattle's Director of Planning and Research, Riverton Heights community representative William C. Holstine outlined several concerns about Sea-Tac Airport noise management, including calls for annual calibration of noise-measuring equipment, independent auditing of the Perry Company's noise study, and additional community-level noise measurements beyond the existing fixed monitoring stations. Holstine argued that existing remedies such as property acquisition and purchase guarantees should not be delayed while new solutions were being studied, and stressed that a five-to-ten-year timeline for resolving aircraft noise impacts—after already waiting ten years—was unacceptable to his community. He urged the Port to expedite and expand its noise remedy programs, drawing a comparison to the Port's willingness to fund other major projects like the Shilshole Marina expansion and the West Seattle Bridge.

A November 1981 letter from Sea-Tac International Airport Chairman Oris W. Dunham Jr. notifies Policy Advisory Committee members of an upcoming meeting scheduled for January 13, 1982, at 2:00 p.m. in Sea-Tac's auditorium. The primary agenda item is a Noise Exposure Update. Committee members wishing to add agenda items or ask questions were directed to contact Beverly Boster at 433-5388.

A 1981 Port of Seattle internal memorandum from the Director of Aviation recommends replacing two aging Crash Fire Rescue vehicles (Red 193 and Red 196) at Sea-Tac Airport, which had been out of service roughly 20% of the time since their 1977 purchase and would each require $170,000 in repairs. The memo also recommends acquiring a new Rapid Intervention Vehicle, as suggested by FAA inspectors. Funding of $1 million was already included in the Airport's 1982 Capital Budget, to be supplemented by proceeds from selling the two problem vehicles.

In this November 4, 1980 letter, Port of Seattle PAC Chairman Oris W. Dunham, Jr. invites PAC members to a community meeting requested by Riverton Heights residents to air their grievances about Sea-Tac International Airport. The meeting was scheduled for November 13, 1980, at 7:30 p.m. at Riverton Heights Elementary School library in Seattle. Dunham clarified the gathering would not be an official PAC meeting, but that he and his staff would attend.

This is a Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) meeting agenda memo from May 28, 1980, chaired by Oris W. Dunham Jr. and addressed to PAC members and interested citizens. The meeting, held at the Sea-Tac Airport Mezzanine, covered topics including aircraft noise, commuter and general aviation patterns, AOU zoning, and a beautification program along the airport buffer zone. Handwritten notes on the document suggest motions and discussions took place regarding PAC member voting privileges and flight path measurements.

A 1979 letter from Sea-Tac International Airport Manager Oris Dunham, Jr. to the Zone Three Committee accompanies a newsletter addressing community questions about airport operations and noise impact. The document explains key programs including the Interim Land Acquisition Program (approved 1974) to purchase properties within FAA-established flight path zones, and the federally funded Airport Development Assistance Program (ADAP), which draws from airline ticket taxes to fund noise remedy efforts. It also references the Sunset Recreational Plan, a coordinated initiative between the Port of Seattle and King County to address land use in the airport's north clear zone.

In May 1979, Jeanne Zalud of Des Moines, WA applied to serve as a citizen representative on the Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) for the Sea-Tac Communities Plan, citing her community involvement and knowledge of the S.T.C.P. The Zone 3 Steering Committee responded in July 1979, acknowledging her application but informing her that further action on PAC representation had been postponed until January 1980. The committee expressed its position that proper citizen representation on the PAC should come from residents of the affected communities, with north and south representatives drawn from noise remedy areas and east and west from land use areas.

In June 1979, the Port of Seattle installed nine noise-monitoring stations around Sea-Tac Airport as part of a $200,000 project. The monitors collect aircraft and community noise data via waterproof microphones, transmitting readings over telephone lines to a minicomputer on the fourth floor of the airport parking garage. Results from the system were expected to influence local noise-remedy programs for affected property owners once full testing was completed that fall.

A 1978 memo from Don Shay notifies the Policy Advisory Committee of a meeting on July 27, 1978, at Sea-Tac International Airport to review recommendations from the Reorganization Task Force. The Task Force proposed restructuring the committee to focus on long-term monitoring of Sea-Tac Plan implementation, handling special issues, and making recommendations to King County and Port of Seattle leadership. The recommended committee composition included representatives from King County, the Port of Seattle, local businesses, the Highline School District, local governments, Sea-Tac Airlines, and four citizen representatives selected by the Highline Community Council.