Airport officials try to soothe Dunwoody North

Oct 18 2000 12:00AM By Kelly Conn, The Crier

Several of DeKalb County's political leaders, candidates, and supporters attended the Dunwoody North Civic Association meeting October 12 to get feedback and support from Dunwoody North residents. State Sen. Bart Ladd, State Reps. Max Davis and Fran Millar, and DeKalb County CEO Elect Vernon Jones were among the officials present at the Dunwoody North Driving Club Clubhouse, but it was the visit by DeKalb Peachtree Airport Director Carl (Lee) Remmel that piqued many residents' interest.

"I want to thank our distinguished guests and Mr. Carl L. (Lee) Remmel, A.A.E., the director of DeKalb Peachtree Airport for being here tonight, Dunwoody North Civic Association President David Fowler said. "Dunwoody North is experiencing a renaissance as a neighborhood. Many of us have seen our home values double in the last few years. Just as the Perimeter and Dunwoody are prime locations in

Atlanta, Dunwoody North is a prime location in Dunwoody. It is important to realize that PDK adds to our location and is an asset to our community at present. Many of our members use it for recreational flying and business. Our purpose here tonight is to research and develop the necessary procedures by which we can monitor and assist PDK so that it remains an asset. We cannot deny the potential it has to negatively impact our investment in our home and property."

In response to many Dunwoody North residents' concern over the disruptive noise level of arriving and departing planes, Remmel opened his presentation with an overview of PDK's new Noise and Operations Monitoring System (NOMS). Airports using the NOMS can issue noise reports to pilots and flight departments. The reports list each aircraft's operations, as well as its corresponding noise event. The reports also notify pilots whether or not the noise event exceeds or complies with the community noise threshold. Pilots can then use the information to determine whether or not they are causing a disturbance and determine the flight procedures that are causing the disturbance.

"Pilots aren't stupid," Remmel said. "They don't want to make noise. They will, when notified, try to do better."

He said PDK paid over a half a million dollars for the NOMS, which it installed this May. The airport currently has four units monitoring the noise around its grounds-one on the north side and three on the south side, where activity is more scattered. Until recently, Remmel said the monitoring system was

successfully progressing. It was helping PDK identify several aviation elements, such as aircraft identification numbers and flight times. But Remmel said the airport recently experienced a setback when its noise analyst pursued a new opportunity. PDK is currently conducting a national search for analyst applicants.

Remmel also addressed several Dunwoody North residents' concern about pilots' disregard for PDK's Voluntary Night Restriction. With the exception of aeromedical and emergency flight operators, the airport strongly encourages pilots not to fly between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. local time. Although the PDK tower is closed during that time, the airport is open 24 hours. Fixed base operators are available throughout the night to provide customer services, such as refueling. However, Remmel said PDK is not considered a major refueling stop for the planes that use the airport during the voluntary restriction hours. The airport averages 12 to 15 planes per day during the Voluntary Night Restriction. Remmel said PDK could not require that the businesses that currently hold a lease with the airport shut down during the voluntary restriction. If the airport were to consider closing between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., all of the leases would have to expire at the same time and be rewritten. Remmel also pointed out that the Federal Aviation Administration has given PDK millions of dollars in grants for residential buyouts around the airport. As a result, PDK has an agreement with the FAA not to discriminate as a public airport. Contrary to past speculation, PDK is a business-oriented airport, and it does not service commercial airlines. According to Remmel, the small jets make the most noise.

After listening to Remmel's presentation, District 1 Commissioner Elaine Boyer suggested that county officials work with the future PDK noise analyst, as well as Rep. Cynthia McKinney's Environment and Transportation Specialist Eric Lausten, who also spoke at the meeting, and the FAA to obtain more information.

"Once we have a (noise analyst) in place, in 60 days, we promise to come back to the neighborhood with information about night flights," she said.