It has been a year since the opening of new O’Hare runway 9L27R began bringing planes over an area of Park Ridge previously unaffected by – and, hence, relatively unconcerned about – that huge airport to the west.  The newly-harassed residents in that area were outraged but, truth be told, many residents in the Northeast and Northwest sections of town were relieved as their air traffic decreased.

According to a page-one story in yesterday’s edition of the Park Ridge Journal (“Record Own Noise Levels,” December 2), however, the Park Ridge O’Hare Airport Commission may be looking to the City to come up with $24,000 to buy its own noise study from a company that formerly did such studies for the defunct Suburban O’Hare Commission (“SOC”).

This proposed noise study, endorsed by Park Ridge Ald. Don “Air Marshall” Bach, appears to be focused more on soundproofing our homes, schools, etc. than on getting planes out of Park Ridge airspace.  According to the Journal article, “Bach hopes to present the [noise] information to congressional representatives and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in an attempt to garner additional sound proofing money for Park Ridge.”   

But at first glance, the plan being endorsed by Bach and the Commission seems far more likely to put some quick cash in the pocket of S&V Solutions, Inc., the former SOC noise consultant that clearly needs a new gig now that SOC is no more, than to put soundproofing money in the City treasury.

Just the fact that the $24,000 proposal involves only one noise monitor to be placed in an as-yet undetermined location suggests that whatever data it produces will be too localized and incomplete to justify any kind of comprehensive relief for our entire community.  That means the likelihood either of more monitors or neighborhood pitted against neighborhood. 

Worse yet, this “plan” seems to put the cart before the horse…again.

For any airport noise plan to have a decent chance of success, City representatives need to go to those congressional representatives and the FAA first – before expending resources on things that may end up being totally worthless – and find out directly from those officials: (1) what relief is available, and (2) exactly what it will take for us to get it.  Simply acquiring and assembling data is idiotic – as idiotic as the City’s throwing away $650,000 on a SOC-brained scheme to build a Peotone airport several years ago.

We need to face the hard cold fact that unless somebody with provable federal clout is willing to commit to going to bat for us in a clearly-defined way based on clearly-defined objectives and clearly-identified standards, we are just chasing our tails.

And wasting tax dollars that are already in too short supply.