Historical November 1989 report or notice. Original dates, prices and contacts describe the source period; current availability has not been established.
October 19, 1989 To the Editor: With the impending expansion of Lambert airport, the residents of Bridgeton are not the only people with cause for concern.
We have been observing with dismay a marked increase in the frequency of low-flying planes over our own neighborhood.
During the summer and early fall, many of us found it virtually impossible to sit outside and socialize with family and friends. Mosquitoes did not drive us indoors—the roar of airplanes did. We’re not talking about a plane or two now and then, but about incessant traffic that often persists for several hours.
On Tuesday evening, October 3 (a typical example) in a twenty-minute period between 7:50 and 8:10 pm, ten lowflying planes halted conversation in our homes and forced us to close windows.
The roar, which had begun late in the afternoon, continued until well past 11 pm.
The following morning, between 8 and 8:30 am, another ten planes thundered by.
We might as well have been living on an airstrip.
We discover that many of our neighbors have given up the use of a deck or back porch because conversation has become so difficult. Listening to the evening news has become a problem, as planes distort a TV picture in addition to covering the sound.
Even telephone conversations must be interrupted when planes pass overhead.
We have asked the Skinker-DeBaliviere Community Council to consider this issue and ask neighbors who are concerned to call the Council at 862-5122. Nancy Farmer, the director, would like to arrange a meeting during the last two weeks of November to address the issue and invite a member of the airport commission to attend and answer questions.
We believe the environmental impact study about to be undertaken in connection with the proposed expansion on Lambert should include the concerns of our neighborhood, which has already been affected by the burgeoning number of flights. Above all, we expect enforcement of altitude regulations and modification of the flight pattern so that in summers to come, we can enjoy peace and quiet in the yard and a neighborly exchange over the fence. Signed: Rheba Symeonogblu Gary and Dee Hayes Seth and Maryse Carlin Pat and Bill Kohn Bob and Debbie Bracey
Originally published in The Times of Skinker-DeBaliviere, November 1989.
Read this article in the original newspaper issue.
Archival transcription note: Rheba’s printed surname appears Symeonogblu; retain signature and flag spelling. Multiple signed residents preserved; no inferred expansion or merging of abbreviated names.
Original source: SD_Times1989_11.pdf, printed page(s) 2; PDF page(s) 2.
