04/16/22: Termination
To begin, I’d like to thank everyone for attending, sharing ideas, and especially those who embraced the idea that there has to be a way to reduce airport overflight noise by working together rather than as squabbling special interest groups.
We made some progress on the 12 action items that came out of that meeting (see our website). Notably, we found a way to collect Pat Hickman’s daily overflight announcements into a searchable database that can be used for statistical overflight reporting. Such fact-based analysis could be used to determine which noise abatement steps are producing favorable trends.
We also uncovered an FAA setaside to help pay for overflight noise measurement systems that would be the most reliable way to measure progress as opposed to opinions and arguments.
On April 5th, I went before our main Charbonneau HOA to request their support. I emphasized that we were not a political organization, nor were we looking to take a position on the many other controversies surrounding the airport. Our HOA declined to provide that support by joining our effort.
I took that decision to my colleagues back in Orange County CA where we had effected a working airport noise abatement program. Their collective opinion is that the Aurora Airport Noise Abatement Organization had little chance of success without the support of the HOA representing our community.
I have therefore made the difficult decision to discontinue the Aurora Airport Noise Abatement Organization. I do have a day job running a corporation with dozens of people deserving my time. If someone wishes to pick up this effort as overflight noise becomes more important, let me know and I’ll see what I can do.
02/21/22: First Meeting Results
We had our first strategy meeting on 02/16/22 with several dozen attendees in person and Zoom. We went around listening for new ideas to address the residential overflight noise to and from the Aurora Airport, and to decide what to do.
The first decision we made was that we did have plenty we could do, so we registered the Aurora Airport Noise Abatement Organization (AANAO, pronounced a-now) as an official non-profit with Oregon’s Secretary of State as registration# 193296697. Following is the first to-do list for our AANAO:
- Establish a mission statement which is provisionally, “Monitor and reduce the overflight noise to and from the Aurora Airport in its surrounding residential communities.” If you have some different wording in mind, now would be a good time to let us know.
- Establish the forum to continue the dialog between residents, airport operators, and regulators to fulfill our mission statement.
- Adopted the preferred flight path on the airport’s own website
as the flight path we will encourage, even compel as necessary. It must be practical and safe or the airport wouldn’t prefer it. - Collect Pat Hickman’s overflight tracking emails into a searchable database that we can use for fact-based trends.
- Expand that overflight database to include all residential areas surrounding the Aurora Airport, including Aurora, Canby, Wilsonville, and the entire French Prairie area.
- Look into the noise monitoring systems implemented at John Wayne Airport (SNA) and Hollywood Burbank Airport (BUR) as part of their noise abatement settlement agreements — possibly to use around here.
- Research the “noise sensitive zone” designation suggested by Pat Hickman for our community and its flight impacts.
- Collaborate with airport operations to identify and address what has been designated as the “14% Group”, the group suspected of causing most of the late night noise. Initially, the AANAO will simply ask them personally to refrain.
- Register AANAO as a 501(c)3 nonprofit with the IRS before the end of the year so that all donations are tax deductible. Note that the attorney’s fees to arrange this are $3K.
- Collect donations totaling $10K to cover AANAO’s out of pocket expenses. The time of the Board of Directors is voluntary and not reimbursable.
- Find at least 2 more members to a voting Board of Directors besides Peter Shikli.
- Grow support for AANAO in terms of registered members, volunteers, municipalities, airport operators, activists, and decision makers so that we can speak with one voice to agencies and elected officials who can reduce our overflight noise pollution.
If any of the above is incorrectly remembered, or if we forgot anything important from the meeting, please do let us know.