"U.S. Rep. Coble Hears Concerns of Residents near High Point, N.C., Airport"

Tuesday, May 28, 2002

U.S. Rep. Coble Hears Concerns of Residents near High Point, N.C.,
Airport
High Point Enterprise, N.C.


Cardinal Commons resident Kinney Ford wants to hear about a fair
resolution to what he expects will become a noisy problem for him and
his neighbors.

But the middle-class homeowner who lives about half a mile from the end
of the proposed new runway at Piedmont Triad International Airport
doesn't believe he'll get an answer that will lower the volume of his
concerns.

Ford said he's flabbergasted that airport officials aren't planning to
offer a buyout or any other compensation to him and his neighbors in
relation to the FedEx Corp. cargo hub project. Ford's two-story,
two-garage beige home with white trim is 2,800 feet from the end of the
proposed third runway that would be built to accommodate the hub.

On Monday, Ford and several of his neighbors invited U.S. Rep. Howard
Coble, R-6th District, to Ford's home to discuss their concerns.

Coble, who earlier this year issued a public statement in support of the
hub project, said he's gotten a steady stream of people calling him
about the issue since FedEx announced four years ago that it had picked
PTIA for its fifth national cargo hub.

Coble said he supports the hub because of the potential economic
benefits of having a major overnight sorting facility in the Triad.
FedEx has pledged to create 1,500 full- and parttime jobs, and economic
developers plan to use the hub to recruit industries that would want
access to the facility.

Coble emphasized to the neighbors that he doesn't believe his role as a
congressman gives him any direct avenue to resolve issues related to the
project. But the nine-term Republican from Greensboro said he would be
willing to relate the concerns of Ford and his neighbors to airport
officials.

"This is an issue that has generated a lot of emotion on both sides,"he
said Monday.

Coble said he'd also be willing to meet with residents of north High
Point who have concerns about the potential impact of noise from
latenight and early morning FedEx cargo planes.

One resident said she believes north High Point residents would want to
take Coble up on the offer.

"I'm sure that we would be interested in meeting with Congressman
Coble,"said Sue Irwin, a resident of Frazier Downs, the only north High
Point neighborhood in the noise cone, or contours, related to the
hub."We would like to express our concerns."

Airport officials have said homes in Frazier Downs would qualify for
soundproofing to mitigate the impact of aircraft noise, but subdivision
residents say they want buyouts.

Ford said he and his Cardinal Commons neighbors worry noise from FedEx
planes and related development, such as a relocated Bryan Boulevard,
will make their lives unbearable."Right now it's an entirely livable
situation,"he said."But it won't be when they build the new runway. It
will literally shake our houses when the planes start using it."

PTIA Executive Director Ted Johnson said the Cardinal Commons
neighborhood is outside the noise cone, so it doesn't qualify for
compensation.

Airport officials currently are projecting to buy 53 homes. Another 209
homes within the noise contour around PTIA would qualify for
soundproofing. The buyouts and soundproofing are expected to cost $10.8
million.

Ford said he believes airport officials are ignoring the plight of
people like Cardinal Commons residents because they want to avoid
spending many more millions of dollars on buyouts.

If the residents' concerns aren't addressed, he said, they would
consider bringing an inverse condemnation lawsuit. The FedEx hub would
create a situation where their homes would be devalued and they would be
hardpressed to find buyers, Ford said.

"We're economic hostages,"he said.


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