Most of you have probably heard NIMB (not in my backyard)
stories. Maybe residents were
opposing the building of a prison near a school, a cell tower near their
neighborhood, or a garbage dump near their house. While all of these can be reasons to pause and evaluate the
best place to build a new structure, here is a reverse NIMB story.
We live two miles from a small airport with a runway
length of 4,422 feet. To give that
some scale, JFK Airport in NYC has four runways ranging in length from 8,400 to
14,500 feet. Our nearby airport
was built for small planes and some corporate jets, whereas JFK was built for
jets of any size. The larger and
heavier the jet, the longer the runway needed for take-off.
In the late nineties, a new development of large homes began
across the street from our neighborhood on land that was previously open
space. With more people living
near the airport, it seemed more people were complaining about the noise from
the planes. A group of private
citizens formed an association to try to stop the noise and ultimately some
say, close the airport. Some went so far as to say "... the airport is shifting toward more and larger
jets". Looking at the length of the runways above, that could
not possibly be true. So why do people say things that are not true? To scare others? To get others to see things from their
point-of-view?
Letters to the editor of our local newspapers appeared from a
few residents in the new development.
They complained about the noise and how living near the airport was
decreasing their property values.
They went so far as to say they wanted the airport closed for everyone's good. Well, that got us annoyed because we certainly did not want it closed and it would not be for our good to close it.
I know that if I were purchasing a new home for over one
million dollars, I would do my homework first. I would know that my new dream house was located less than
two miles from an airport. My
realtor certainly should have pointed that out to me, and if he didn’t shame on
him. But even if he didn’t, it is ultimately my responsibility to research my
million-dollar-plus purchase. I
would even spend some time on a Saturday afternoon sitting in my car, judging
for myself how much noise there actually was. I certainly wouldn’t buy a house then demand that the city
airport be closed down because it was disturbing me.
We did our research 22 years ago, and decided to buy our
house because of its close proximity to the airport. My husband is a pilot and wanted to
have a short drive to the airport while enjoying his hobby on weekends, flying
small single engine planes, flying with our sons, taking fun day and weekend
trips. So it certainly made us pause when others acted in the manner referenced above. We actually enjoy looking overheard on
weekends seeing the planes on their descent to the airstrip. When we are outside on a summer
afternoon, talking on the phone, and a plane goes overhead, we simply say, ‘Hold
on, a plane is going by’ then continue. Not a big deal. We
got what we paid for.
So I guess my two cents here is that while it is okay to try
to stop new structures being built in your backyard, don’t try to close one
down after
you buy your house, so long as its size, mission, or purpose has not changed. For this airport I say yes, YIMB.
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Our local airport...photo taken during landing by me, the co-pilot. |
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In the air, explaining something to our son, many years ago. |
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"Sure mom, I can pose for a quick photo." |
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Cousins... | |
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Taking our German exchange student for a ride to Nantucket for the day... |
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...and enjoying a picnic on the Nantucket beach. |
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Taking another German exchange student on a day trip (a different year)... |
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...to Ocean City, Maryland. |
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More cousins and a friend... |
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...and taking that friend to the Hamptons for the day. |
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Helping the Cub Scouts with a badge... |
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...which included a visit to the control tower. |
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A birthday party that included sitting in a plane (but not flying in it; it is a 4-seater) |
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Family trip to PA for the weekend to visit even more cousins. |
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Flying to Niagara Falls... |
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...for the weekend. |
My husband built this airplane in our backyard for the kids to play in;
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