Re-Evaluating Soundproofing At Three Suburban Chicago Schools

With an expansion in the works at O'Hare International Airport, the FAA is going back to three nearby suburban schools to determine if they should receive federal grants for soundproofing.

The FAA had previously denied the grants for the schools. But airport and school district officials didn't let it go, lobbying FAA officials in Washington last December. The suburban Chicago Daily Herald reports that FAA Acting Associate Administrator for Airports Catherine Lang participated in a tour of all three schools, Elk Grove and Ridgewood high schools as well as Carpenter School in Ridge Park.

O'Hare Noise Compatability Commission (ONCC) executive director Brendan McLaughlin said the folks from the FAA seemed genuinely interested in listening to their concerns, but "at the end of the day, they rely on science and scientific models to measure the noise."

Lang said the schools would receive the grants if they met a minimum noise threshold established by for school sound insulation eligibility.

The FAA has made grants in 117 such cases through a school sound insulation program.

FMI: www.faa.gov