More planes over Healdsburg?

On July 11th the Healdsburg Transportation Advisory Commission called a special meeting to decide whether it should recommend that the city council approve or deny a commercial lease and concession agreement with Robert Markwood for a non commercial operator certified flight instruction and airplane rental service at the Healdsburg Municipal Airport.
Prior to the commission meeting Mr Markwood was kind enough to speak with the neighbors in an informal meeting on June 26. Mr Markwood explained that his operation would be limited to ten operations a day, meaning ten flights into and ten flights out of the airport, and some additional night flights. He also planned on renting out up to five planes. Mr Markwood seems like an honest decent man, and I appreciated his reaching out. My concerns are solely in regard to the ramifications of his proposal.
Over two dozen neighbors and residents of Healdsburg were present at the commission meeting. Most speakers were opposed to the measure, and three pilots were present that supported the lease. The assistant city manager, David Mickaelian, stated that due to the city’s acceptance of an FAA grant to improve the runway the city must allow all permitted use leases at the airport.  Therefore, should the lease be denied, the city might face litigation.  Additionally, he stated that this was the only way to control the amount of use at the airport. Should Mr. Markwood open a school elsewhere he would be able to use the airport as often as he wanted, since there are no regulations and no fees attached to such use.
It was clear that apart from attending pilots there was uniform resistance to the planned flight school and rental service. According to several longstanding neighbors there were agreements made between the city and the community over the course of the years that there would never be a flight school and no helicopter landings at the airport. One neighbor’s land was used to extend the runway, with the promise of no further expansion and no flight schools.
After listening to comments from the public, four committee members voted against recommending approval of the lease and three voted in favor. The matter will next be decided by city council.
Some of the main concerns voiced at the meeting included:
• Increase in noise, traffic, planes not adhering to the flight path, added risk of accidents, as well as the burning of leaded fuel above a rural residential neighborhood.
• Neighbors uniformly reported pilots ignoring the flight path and flying over their homes at very low altitudes. One resident from within the city limits reported a flight so low over her yard she was able to see the pilots face. Another neighbor, also from within the city limits, spoke of a stampede caused on her farm due to a low flying plane. Two of her race horses were permanently damaged and several others hurt, as well as property damaged. She has received compensation, but fears a reoccurrence.
• Helicopters take off and land up to 20 times in one day.
• There have been recent emergency landing in Healdsburg by planes coming out of the municipal airport.
• There is a $1,000,000 general liability insurance per occurrence, which may not be enough to cover all damage to the homes and farms in the surrounding area.
• All this effort to approve or deny this lease is for a one-year lease.  In 12 months, all terms are open to renegotiation.
• If this lease is granted and it sets a precedent, it opens up future liability should the city decline other businesses wanting to use the Healdsburg Airport, such as e.g. crop dusting, tourist flight etc.
Mr. Markwood will be paying a tie-down lease of $258.89 per month and a $10 landing fee. This is the fiscal benefit to the city. When asked about other benefits to the city or the community Mr. Markwood agreed there would be none.
During the preliminary meeting I was able to ask Mr Markwood, who lives in Sebastopol, why he had chosen Healdsburg for his business and not Santa Rosa, where after all a flight school had just closed. He said his office for flight simulation training is in Healdsburg, and it would be inconvenient to move it. Furthermore he said Healdsburg was quiet and beautiful.
Should City Council deny the lease, I would hope that Mr. Markwood will not be inclined to sue a town with limited funds and the simple desire to stay quiet and beautiful.
As a concerned citizen please show your support at the Healdsburg city council meeting, tentatively planned for August 19, 2013.
Lisa Steinkamp is a Healdsburg area resident.