New Haven Independent

The neighbors gathered for the chilly and contentious roadside meeting Wednesday night to discuss plans to re-route and slow traffic on Dodge Road. The meeting raised old resentments harbored by local residents, frustrated with decades of unfulfilled airport promises.

Clustered around a large map of the proposed road changes, a dozen locals stood on the edge of Burr Street to meet with Tim Larson (pictured above, at left, alongside Fico), the new executive director of the Tweed New Haven Airport Authority, and city transportation chief Mike Piscitelli. Also present was Alderwoman Arlene DePino, who lives in and represents the area.

Piscitelli (pictured, in black) explained that the re-routing of Dodge Road is part of a “whole package” of improvements proposed as part of Tweed’s plans to expand runway safety zones. According to Piscitelli, the expanded runway safety zones, which are mandated and funded by the federal government, involve the leveling grass areas near the airport’s runways and the creation of areas of “reinforced turf” to catch planes that go off the runway.

For neighbors, the package contains improvements to the area, including traffic calming and sound insulation. Neighbors welcome the traffic calming, but are concerned about increased airplane traffic. And they’re also skeptical that any improvements will happen at all.

Complicating this issue is the fact that the town of East Haven issued a cease and desist order to stop any expansion at Tweed. Tweed has filed suit against East Haven to allow for the construction of the runway safety areas. The suit will be heard on Monday, May 5. (More on this here.)

Speed and Size

“I’ve had cars crash into my house three times,” Carmel Fico said. “Three times. Right into my house.” Fico lives at 310 Burr St, directly across from where Dodge Avenue meets Burr. She said that drivers on Dodge often go too fast, ignore the stop sign at the intersection and end up going straight up her driveway, sometimes hitting the house.

Fico said that she is happy with the proposed road changes, which will create two new traffic-slowing curves in Dodge Ave and re-route it so that it meets Burr Street slightly to the north of where it does now.

Fico and her neighbors were happy to have a plan to slow traffic, but they weren’t all confident that the plans would be effective, saying that many drivers ignore the stop signs that are up now.

The discussion of speeding cars spilled into several other topics as the meeting proceeded. The coherence of the discussion was often limited by the fact that there were several conversations occurring at once, each being interrupted frequently.

“Why don’t we all talk one at a time?” Ed Fitzgerald (pictured, at left, with Piscitelli) of 348 Burr St. shouted at one point, managing to get the groups attention momentarily.

Fitzgerald was concerned that the package of airport improvements was “predicated on increased service at the airport,” an unpopular idea in a neighborhood where houses are regularly rattled by jets taking off.

“We’re not trying to compete with Bradley [Airport],” Larson said, explaining that even just one more daily flight would add 80 new customers per day.

Sound and Skepticism

In addition to cars running into her home, Fico said that her whole house shakes whenever jets take off at the airport. She said that the rattling even cracked her door. Once, when a jet took off, “it cracked my solid wood door. Cracked it right down the middle.”

Larson stressed that the plans for airport improvements include a “linear park system around the whole airport,” which would act as a sound buffer.

Piscitelli explained to the group that the package of improvements included plans for insulating the homes neighboring the airport against noise, including insulated windows and walls.

“Insulating our homes? That’s a pipe dream” said Fitzgerald.

“It’s no pipe dream” said Piscitelli firmly.

Fitzgerald’s skepticism is typical of a neighborhood that has grown skeptical about Tweed’s follow-through on its promises.

Others also asked whether the plans were in writing. “Doesn’t matter if they are,” said a woman who asked to not be named. She said that she’s lived in the neighborhood for 43 years without seeing changes that were promised.

John Savinelli of 336 Burr said that a sound barrier was promised decades ago. “They said they’d put up trees,” he said. “That was 30 years ago at least.” But “these are new guys,” Savinelli added, saying that he wanted to give Larson and Piscitelli a chance to and not judge them based on past failures.

After the meeting, Fitzgerald said that he was also concerned that the airport’s plans to expand runway safety zones would be the first step towards an increase airplane traffic, even against the wishes of the neighborhood. “It’s the Trojan horse,” he said.

Asked about her neighbors’ suspicion of the airport plans, Arlene DePino (pictured, center) said, “There’s been a lot of empty promises over the years so they’re naturally skeptical.” DePino said that at any rate it will be a minimum of a year before any construction starts.

“You can’t stop progress,” Fico said sanguinely as she walked back to her house with her husband. “Everybody’s nervous because we’re old people. But we’ll get used to it.”

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