UWS Town Hall Mtg. Last Night
One of the members of Hudson River Helicopter Noise Coalition was able to attend the Town Hall Meeting last night, and forwarded a brief synopsis of the meeting:
I did attend the town hall meeting and did speak up. A number of people in the audience applauded, signifying that they agree the helicopter noise is a problem. Gale Brewer was aware of other complaints, mentioning the names of someone on 86th St., someone else on 79th St., and a group on 83rd. St. She said that she is working with Jerry Nadler on this, that they are seeking to have the FAA declare that tourist helicopters may not fly over Manhattan, that FAA said they do not have the authority to do this, and that Jerry Nadler said he would initiate legislation to give it the authority. She promised to continue working on this issue, but said that it was a very hard problem. I did state that more than 50% of the helicopter traffic consisted of tourist flights, that the City could take steps such as barring all tourist flights from City heliports, and short of that, could set limits on frequency of flights and on making U turns over residential areas.
Thanks to all of those who could attend on such short notice. Below are some upcoming scheduled meetings:
Annual Open House: Monday, May 18, 2009, 5:30 – 8:30 PM, 563 Columbus Avenue at West 87th St. “light refreshments with neighbors and community leaders”
Evening in the Garden: Sunday, June 21, 2009, 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Louis D. Brandeis High School Community Garden, West 84th St. and Amsterdam Av. Sponsored by Gale Brewer, Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum.
Town Hall Community Meeting RE: Helicopter Noise, Tonight
Friends, it was brought to my attention today, that the UWS city council reps will be holding a town hall meeting tonight at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater, located at 899 10th Avenue (between 58th and 59th), from 6-8 P.M.. This will be a great opportunity for the community to voice their concerns regarding helicopter noise in the area. I apologize for the late notice. Thanks for all of your support.
One less News Helicopter hovering overhead
[photo by: Roca/News]
For some (like those who live in NYC locations where news helicopters habitually hover), it is cause for celebration, as Channel 4 announces today that it is grounding its helicopter. According to the Daily News, Channel 4 has entered into an agreement to share a helicopter with channel 5, in an effort to meet budget constraints. If the television news media really wanted to be fiscally smart, they would take advantage of the countless fixed cameras in locations like the GW Bridge, instead of repeatedly harassing the local residents by hovering overhead at low altitudes.
