Lauderdale Airport Runway Expansion Disrupts Home Sales

Lauderdale Airport Runway Expansion Disrupts Home Sales
Fort Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, FL

Posted January 6 2004 

Gene Conley wanted to retire soon and build a cabin near his grandchildren in 
North Carolina. But he says he hasn't been able to sell his Dania Beach home 
because of the expansion of Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

When he put his house on the market last year for $680,000, he was certain 
buyers would love the remodeled home with its in-ground swimming pool, 60-foot 
dock and $200,000 in renovations. A family agreed to draw up a contract to buy 
the Melaleuca Gardens house in early December, only to back away once Broward 
County commissioners approved plans for a second major runway at the nearby 
airport, Conley said.

Conley is among the residents, city officials and real estate lawyers 
pressuring the county to speed up help for those whose lives will be most 
disrupted by the expansion. They want the county to begin offering to buy homes 
in high-noise zones and reimburse residents for any financial losses 
immediately, rather than several years from now.

"This boondoggle has put everything I planned in limbo until they do 
something," said Conley, who needs the money from selling his home to build the 
new one. "I can't sell my home. I doubt if I could give it away. They've done 
irreparable damage to me now. This isn't something happening down the road."

Real estate agents familiar with the area say the news of the new runway has 
likely harmed property values at the moment, but said homeowners should not 
overreact. They argue the runway remains a long time off and people will still 
be drawn to buy in areas like Melaleuca Gardens because it offers waterfront 
property on the east side of the county at affordable prices.

Yet lawyers representing area residents argue that quick relief is essential 
because some homeowners will want or need to move long before the runway is 
built and the mere approval of the runway plans could reduce their property 
value.

The county has promised to help residents before the runway opens and the noise 
increases and will draw up plans in the next couple months. Officials are not 
certain how such a relief program would work, when it would start, which 
residents would be helped or whether the assistance would include soundproofing 
or buying homes.

Airport officials will meet with the airlines in February to discuss raising 
fees to pay for the assistance. The county wants to increase passenger service 
charges from $3 to $4.50 per ticket and double landing fees.

The county expects to spend between $45 million and $85 million to help the 
surrounding neighborhoods. The increase in the passenger service charges would 
raise $67 million over the next five years alone.

"We realize there are people likely being affected and want to fund this at the 
front end rather than at the back end," County Administrator Roger Desjarlais 
said.

Initial estimates are that once the airport is expanded, 12,700 people in Dania 
Beach, Fort Lauderdale and Davie will live in high-noise zones where the roar 
of jet engines overhead will be extreme.

The expansion plans call for the airport to lengthen the small runway on its 
south side so it can handle commercial airliners. The runway would cost as much 
as $555 million and would not be completed until between 2010 and 2014 if it 
wins federal approval.

Andy Schuster, a Fort Lauderdale-based real estate lawyer, said the airport's 
last expansion showed the need for immediate help for residents. The old 
Ravenswood community increasingly deteriorated and became crime-ridden as it 
was bought out more than a decade ago, he said.

He and law partner Toby Brigham have been contacted by about 20 residents of 
the area around the airport and plan to make a proposal to the county shortly, 
seeking help for any who face immediate hardships.

They will meet tonight with residents to discuss problems they had since the 
county's decision and to map out their strategy. Dania Beach officials also 
want the county to set up a town hall meeting as soon as possible to explain 
what will happen next and when people can expect help.

"Just the announcement itself can have profound effects on the lives and 
financial futures of the ordinary people who live there," Schuster said. "It 
will be difficult for people to sell or rent their property. It's as if the 
county has already taken away their rights."

He expects more residents who live in the high-noise zone to face problems like 
Conley's. He said there are skeptical buyers, property owners concerned about 
what would happen if they needed to move before the county takes action, and 
others concerned about whether they should proceed with long-planned repairs.

John Ryan of A.J. Ryan Realty and Ellen Kabot of Coldwell Banker said the 
airport expansion likely is dampening home prices at the moment but said the 
area should rebound once the controversy drops out of the news.

Both said they had long advised buyers to beware of the airport noise and the 
expansion plans when buying in the area, and that few had been turned off. Ryan 
said he now advises clients looking at the area that if they end up being 
bought out, the county must pay fair market value.

"People will get over the initial panic and still buy because of its value," 
Kabot said. "Some may be reluctant now because this is in the news, but these 
areas have always been next to the airport."
 
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