Overview

SFO Airport/Community Roundtable
Meeting No. 289 Overview
Wednesday, January 29, 2014

 

1. Call to Order / Roll Call / Declaration of a Quorum Present

Roundtable Chairperson, Jeffrey Gee, called the Regular Meeting of the SFO Airport/Community Roundtable to order, at approximately 7:08 p.m., in the Aviation Library and Museum at the San Francisco International Airport. James A. Castañeda, AICP, Roundtable Coordinator, called the roll. A quorum (at least 12 Regular Members) was present as follows:

REGULAR MEMBERS PRESENT

REGULAR MEMBERS ABSENT

ADVISORY MEMBERS PRESENT

ROUNDTABLE STAFF

SAN FRANCISCO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT STAFF

2. 2012-2013 Jon C. Long Fly Quiet Awards

Bert Ganoung, Noise Abatement Manager, provided a history and overview of the Fly Quiet program at San Francisco International Airport. After, Roundtable Chairperson, Jeffrey Gee, introduced the award nominees: All Nippon Airways for the “Quietest Overall Airline,” Air New Zealand for “Most Improved Airlines,” and United Airlines for the Chairperson’s Award.

ACTION: Richard Newman MOVED the approval of the selected recipients of the 2012-2013 Fly Quiet Awards. The motion was seconded by Naomi Patridge and CARRIED, unanimously.

 

3. Adoption of Resolutions Recognition of Departing Representatives

Chairperson Gee acknowledged the following departing Roundtable representatives for their service and dedication to the Roundtable: Belmont representative Dave Warden, Belmont alternate representative Coralin Feierbach, Burlingame representative Michael Brownrigg, and City of San Mateo representative Maureen Freschet.

ACTION: Naomi Patridge MOVED the adoption of the resolutions. The motion was seconded by Ken Ibarra and CARRIED, unanimously.

 

4. Election of Roundtable Chairperson for Calendar Year 2014

Chairman Gee opened the floor to nominations for Chairperson.

ACTION: Naomi Patridge MOVED to nominate Brisbane representative Cliff Lentz for the position of Chairperson of the Roundtable. Dave Pine seconded the nomination. Hearing no additional nominations, a vote was taken and acceptance of Cliff Lentz as Roundtable Chairperson was CARRIED, unanimously.

 

5. Election of Roundtable Vice-Chairperson for Calendar Year 2014

Assuming the role of Chairperson, Cliff Lentz opened the floor to nominations for Vice-Chairperson of the Roundtable.

ACTION: Naomi Patridge MOVED to nominate San Mateo County Board of Supervisors representative Dave Pine for the position of Vice-Chairperson of the Roundtable. Jeffrey Gee seconded the nomination. Hearing no additional nominations, a vote was taken and acceptance of Dave Pine as Roundtable Vice-Chairperson was CARRIED, unanimously.

 

6. Public Comments on Items NOT on the Agenda

Foster City resident Derrick Chua discussed the ongoing overflight issues.

 

CONSENT AGENDA

 

7. Review of Airport Director’s Reports for August 2013, September 2013, October 2013, November 2013, and December 2013

8. Review of Roundtable Regular Meeting Overview for September 4, 2013 and November 6, 2013

DISCUSSION: None.

ACTION: Richard Newman MOVED the approval of the Consent Agenda (minus the minutes to the November 6, 2013 Regular Meeting). The motion was seconded by Ken Ibarra and CARRIED, unanimously.

 

REGULAR AGENDA – PRESENTATION ITEMS

 

9. Review of SFO FlyQuiet Report for Q3 2013

Bert Ganoung, Noise Abatement Manager, provided an overview of the SFO FlyQuiet report for the fourth quarter of 2013 included in the meeting packet.

DISCUSSION: Foster City representative, Steve Okomoto, asked about the “red box” shown around Foster City during Mr. Ganoung’s presentation. It was explained that the red box is used to score airlines on their ability to fly the Foster City arrivals, and encourages airlines to avoid flying over the area. Mr. Okomoto asked if the FAA is aware of the box, and what is their obligation to adhere to it. Dave Foyle, FAA Sierra-Pacific District Manager, indicated that while the controllers do not see the red box nor are obligated to adhere to such, the noise abatement procedures do in some cases avoid the areas illustrated in the red box. It was clarified that the FlyQuiet program is a voluntary effort that differs from noise abatement procedures.

 

10. Airport Director’s Comments

Airport Director, John Martin, provided a brief history of the Aviation Museum and Library. It was mentioned that the airport ends 2013 with a 1% increase in domestic traffic, and a 2% increase in international traffic, which is a slower rate of growth of years prior. The upcoming summer months can be expected to have the same number of flights as of 2013. It was indicated that Doug Yakel, Airport Public Information Officer, has continued giving presentations to City officials regarding the forthcoming runway safety improvement construction. It was noted that both Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines will no longer be utilizing the Boeing 747-400 at SFO in favor of the quieter Boeing 777 aircrafts. Cargo carriers operating out of SFO are also replacing the older Boeing 747-400F aircrafts for newer and quieter Boeing 747-800F aircrafts.

 

REGULAR AGENDA – WORK PROGRAM ITEMS

 

11. SFO Construction Update and Departure/Arrival Affects

Bert Ganoung, Airport Noise Abatement Manager, reported construction and closures will start this April. Community outreach has continued at the City level, with the ongoing efforts to discuss with city officials.

 

12. Update on FAA’s PORTE Departure Analysis

Brisbane resident Peter Grace provided a presentation reviewing the ongoing noise impacts over the community of Brisbane, and recommendations on how to improve the situation.

 

13. Work Program Subcommittee Recommendations, Oceanic Arrivals over the Woodside VOR

Roundtable Technical Consultant Cindy Gibbs provided a brief overview of the deployment of the noise monitors in Woodside and Portola Valley. Due to some technical issues with the equipment deployed by Oakland International Airport, data gathering for comparison will be ongoing to have a full period of report and will be presented at a future date. Airport Noise Abatement Manager, Bert Ganoung, gave an overview of the deployment details of the monitoring sites.

DISCUSSION: Chairperson Lentz pointed out the letter from Congresswoman Eshoo’s office regarding reduction of noise over the Woodside and Portola Valley area, and asked Mr. Ganoung to explain. It was pointed out that the lack of vectoring was the primary contributor to the reduction of noise over the area in recent months. Portola Valley resident Tina Nguyen indicated that other metrics were not used to look at exceedances, and hoped that they would be in the future.

 

14. Report, Optimization of Airspace and Procedures in the Metroplex (OAPM) Environmental Review

Roundtable Chairperson, Cliff Lentz, provided an overview of the December 20, 2013 meeting with the FAA, and the follow-up discussion with FAA staff. It was discussed that considerations for community meeting(s) prior to the release of the Environmental Assessment (EA) are being reviewed, but have yet to be approved by the FAA and are waiting to see how the request is being received. The anticipated release of the EA is March 24, 2014.

DISCUSSION: Chairperson Lentz suggested what the various meetings, if approved by the FAA for their participation, would be: (1) a meeting to gather public input on what the FAA should consider as part of the OAPM process; (2) a subcommittee meeting to include representatives from the Roundtable, Oakland Noise Forum, Congressional Offices, and the OAPM Design Team; and (3) a follow-up meeting prior to the release of the EA. Vice-chairperson Pine indicated that any public meeting would require immediate scheduling and coordination. When asked, Roundtable Coordinator, James Castañeda, indicated that the earliest any public meeting involving the Roundtable be coordinated would be mid-February.

Half Moon Bay representative, Naomi Patridge, and Hillsborough representative, Shawn Christianson, both expressed their concerns of hosting any public meeting prior to the release of the EA, given that none of the details of the OAPM will be known until that time. Redwood City representative, Jeffrey Gee, reiterated the goal of the meetings prior to the EA is to provide the FAA with feedback from the community for their consideration, while managing the public’s expectation of what the OAPM process will and will not do, if only to keep in mind minor modifications on procedures. Ms. Patridge reiterated her concern about offering a venue for the public to express their concerns, while trying to communicate the constraints and what the Roundtable is unable to accomplish participating in the OAPM process. It was suggestion that, while the public will have an opportunity to express concerns after the EA is released, the Roundtable and its subcommittee should still continue to work and communicate with the FAA. Vice-chairperson Pine indicated that perhaps the Roundtable’s efforts be best focused on providing meaningful response to the EA once its release, which would require a coordinated effort on the Roundtable’s part in the weeks leading up to the release of the document.

Chairperson Lentz suggested utilizing the Work Program Subcommittee to focus on preparing for the EA in the meantime before its release, and to allow them to determine how to coordinate the Roundtable’s efforts to provide meaningful input. It was also suggested investigating the creation of a super-committee consisting of representatives of the Bay Area Noise groups to meet with the OAPM design team. A call for volunteers to participate on the Work Program Subcommittee was made; Chairperson Lentz, Vice-chairperson Pine, Portola Valley representative Ann Wengert, and Foster City representative Steve Okomoto agreed to participate.

ACTION: Naomi Patridge MOVED to: (1) assign Chairperson Cliff Lentz, Vice-chairperson Dave Pine, Ann Wengert, and Steve Okomoto to the Work Program Subcommittee; and (2) task the Work Program Subcommittee to effort the OAPM EA review and commenting coordination. The motion was seconded by Ken Ibarra and CARRIED, unanimously.

 

15. Resolution to Set 2014 Roundtable Meeting Dates

DISCUSSION: None.

ACTION: Jeffrey Gee MOVED the adoption of the resolution to set the 2014 Roundtable Regular meeting dates. The motion was seconded by Richard Newman and CARRIED, unanimously.

 

16. Airport Noise Briefing

Roundtable Aviation Technical Consultant Cindy Gibbs gave an update on recent voluntary measures regarding helicopter noise impacts in the Los Angeles basin area. An update was also provided on research on making aircraft quieter with consideration to the airframe itself.

 

17. Member Communications / Announcements

Vice-chairperson Pine expressed thanks to the airport for offering a tour to Roundtable members of the recently opened Boarding Area E of Terminal 3 at SFO on January 17, 2014.

 

18. Adjourn

The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:34 p.m.

______________________________________________________________________
Minutes approved at the April 2, 2014 Regular Meeting.