Asking Longmont City Council To Lobby Local Member Of Congress To Have Noise Concerns In The Bill

After losing a lawsuit against a local skydiving operation, Longmont, CO 'Citizens for Quiet Skies' have begun talking with local lawmakers about having Congress force the FAA to address noise concerns at airports around the country as part of the agency's reauthorization that will be debated next month.

Boulder, CO district judge Judith LaBuda ruled earlier this year that Longmont, CO-based Mile-Hi Skydiving followed all FAA procedures when conducting operations from the local airport, and the judge could not legally force the airport or the company to change operations to mollify the residents complaining about the noise. So those residents now hope to influence the debate in Washington to change those FAA procedures, which would force companies like Mile-Hi Skydiving to change as well.

The group has begun at the local level, scheduling meetings with each of the seven members of the city council, who they hope will then lobby Representative Jared Polis (D-2-CO) on the issue. Kimberly Gibbs, the resident who led the Citizens for Quiet Skies movement, said that the group wants the council to "actively support the community regarding the airport and gaining more local control." She said the hope to "help" not only Longmont, but other communities as well.

FMI: http://citizensforquietskies.org, http://longmontcolorado.gov/