SAFETY HARBOR - The City Commission is poised to become the first elected body in the county to formally oppose a proposed $223-million expansion of the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport.
But commissioners are postponing a decision on adopting a resolution against the project until they hear from from County Administrator Steve Spratt and interim airport director Thomas Jewsbury. Their presentations are scheduled for Nov. 17.
Commissioners plan to take up the resolution on Dec. 1.
"We're not going to address it until after they meet with us and we find out what they're doing," Mayor Pam Corbino said.
The resolution, however, is almost ready, with only a few tweaks here and there, she said.
A draft of the document opposes plans to expand the main runway by 10,000 feet, stating such a project "will have a serious impact upon Pinellas County's northern communities, including Safety Harbor, Oldsmar, Del Oro Groves, Countryside and East Lake."
It also requests additional members from Safety Harbor to serve on the 17-member Aircraft Noise Abatement Task Force, which has been meeting since February.
Safety Harbor lies right under the main approach to the airport, and Corbino has become one of the most outspoken critics of the airport's proposed 20-year master plan.
"It's not that we want to shut the airport down," Corbino said. "We want them to look more strongly at noise abatement. We are saying we don't want the length of the runway to go to 10,000 feet. I think it can be a very viable airport without that."
County officials see the expansion of the airport as an investment that could bring thousands of new jobs and about $780-million annually to Pinellas County.
But a growing number of residents, particularly those living in Feather Sound near the airport, as well as the communities to the north, already hear noise from existing flights and fear that will only increase with a longer runway.
"The noise is an issue that needs to be addressed," said Safety Harbor Commissioner Nadine Nickeson. "I would hope that a resolution continues to gain the attention of the airport authority and that they listen to the concerns of our citizens."
During a public information meeting last month, Corbino asked county commissioners to delay a vote on the plan until it includes definitive hours of operation, higher altitudes for arriving planes and mandatory noise abatement procedures.
Since then, the airport has worked with ATA Airlines, the largest commercial carrier at the airport, and United Parcel Service, the largest cargo shipper, to shuffle some early morning flights. However, there are still two scheduled flights that arrive before 6 a.m.
"We don't have a formal curfew in place," Jewsbury said. "We are working with the airlines and cargo carriers to try and minimize the aircraft operations that take place between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m."
The master plan has yet to be approved or formally discussed by county commissioners. Consultants and airport officials have been busy drafting the plan and it is expected to be presented to commissioners in the coming months.
But the $17.5-million runway extension project was approved in 2001 and is scheduled to be completed by late 2005 or 2006, if permits are issued and designs approved by various authorities.
Still, city officials want to make sure the county knows where they stand.
"I think it's important that the county knows how local government feels," Commissioner Keith Zayac said. "They're always asking us for input. They do want our input. This is a way of giving them our input as a commission rather than as individuals."
