Liana Teixeira Photo
Nemerson makes the case.
The city’s development chief made a two-part pitch to skeptical Morris Cove neighbors: Support further paving of Tweed-New Haven Airport’s runway. And trust us.
The two pitches are inextricably linked, as illustrated by the history of neighborhood-City Hall tensions over the airport.
Those tensions were on display Tuesday night at an East Shore Community Management Team meeting held at the Morris Cove firehouse.
Some neighbors were up in arms over a plan to pave over a total of 600 feet of dirt and gravel at the ends of the airport’s runway. The city wants to see that happen so that more jets can fly in and out of Tweed, theoretically boosting economic development in New Haven.
The idea infuriated neighbors at the meeting. They said they worry that the plan may exacerbate already-increasing flooding in Morris Cove. And they pointed out that New Haven’s previous mayor had signed a 2009 “Memorandum of Understanding” with East Haven that that specifically called for no further paving of the runway, to keep it at its current 5,600-foot length. (Click here to read about that agreement.) Neighbors called the new plan the latest example of a violation of trust.
Airport manager Tim Larson had mentioned the new plan at a previous neighborhood meeting, setting off the sparks; the airport’s authority has authorized borrowing money to begin engineering work. Tuesday night, instead of Larson, city Economic Development Administrator Matthew Nemerson, a longtime proponent of expanding airport service, showed up to address the issue.
Neighbors let him have it.
“The city and airport have credibility issues,” said Renate Dicks (pictured), the management team’s secretary. “You can’t just come back five years later and say, ‘Now we need more space.’”
Tweed needs another 600 feet or so of runway to maximize the use of the airport and accommodate new, quieter aircraft that require more space to take off and land, Nemerson told the neighbors. Nemerson said the airport could then send out eight or nine affordable flights a day to places people want to visit, like Chicago and Washington D.C.
He called such flights crucial to New Haven’s economic future.
“There is no plan to expand to 7,000 feet,” assured Nemerson.
At the time of the 2009 memorandum of understanding, officials believed that a new generation of smaller, fuel-efficient jets like the Embraer 190 would require less runway space than the old 737s they have replaced, according to Nemerson. That turned out to be false, he said. They need more like 6,200 feet, he said.
As a result, he said, the city is seeking “to change an agreement we [previously] thought we could live with.”
Jody Rowell (pictured) of Concord Street remained unconvinced.
“This isn’t just about expanding,” said Rowell. Since moving to the neighborhood in March 2013, Rowell said, she has experienced a constant problem with flooding. She claims Tweed is in control of the floodgates near the creek behind her house and pumps excess storm and sewer water into her neighborhood.
If the airport expands, she predicted, the flooding will get worse.
Nemerson said that before paving would occur, an environmental study will be done to address that very concern, to assess whether how much extra runoff would occur into catch basins as a result of more paving.
“We need to talk about this,” Nemerson said after the meeting. “I understand exactly why they would look at me with dubious eyes. This remains a huge economic opportunity for the city as more and more of the economy goes to service-sector jobs. An immigrant or someone coming out of prison is not going to get a job at a factory, most likely. You are going to get a job at a hotel or restaurant or some aspect of leisure or hospitality.”
More of those jobs will come here if, for instance, if the developer of the old Coliseum site can build an envisioned four-and-a-half-star 18-story hotel, and if Yale and Yale-New Haven Hospital can host “millions of dollars’ worth” of extra conferences, Nemerson said. And that can happen, he argued, only if more jets can fly into and out of Tweed.
“They’re absolutely right to dump on me,” Nemerson said of the neighbors. “We need to build their trust before we can build” a longer runway.
Paul Bass contributed reporting.
Nemerson is absolutely correct on this issue. Technology changes. Let the gravel get paved so that we can retain a few jobs in our city.