DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A DeKalb County commissioner is calling for an overnight flight ban at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport following public outcry over a recently approved, multi-million-dollar hangar development.
The call for change comes as residents packed a town hall meeting Tuesday night, urging county leaders to reconsider their decision to allow eight new airline hangars to be built as part of a $45 million private development at the county-owned airport, commonly known as PDK.
Homeowners who live near the airport say they feel blindsided by the vote.
“I feel like we got sold down the river,” said Jaime Dutro, who lives near the airport and opposes the project.
County commissioners approved the development last month.
“All right, that motion does pass,” a commissioner said during the vote.
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Dutro said he fears the new hangars are only the start of a larger expansion.
“I don’t see this as anything more than just another step down the road toward a major expansion of PDK,” he said.
Residents told Channel 2 investigative reporter Ashli Lincoln that they are worried about growing noise levels and environmental impacts in neighborhoods surrounding the airport.
“I just don’t see this as anything but a bad thing for our neighborhood,” Dutro said.
Developers behind the project said the hangars will actually help reduce overall congestion by cutting down on the number of aircraft taxiing around the airport.
“The proximity is perfect and the space on the airport is tight, and we need room to accommodate more aircraft — not larger aircraft, but more aircraft,” said a supporter for the development.
County officials said the project does not require taxpayer funding and is expected to generate more than $200 million in tax revenue. According to county estimates, about $67 million would go directly to the airport, while DeKalb County schools would receive more than $230 million.
Despite those projections, DeKalb County Commissioner Ted Terry, whose district includes the airport, said he plans to introduce a moratorium to block any future hangar developments. He also said he intends to ask the Federal Aviation Administration to ban nighttime flights at the airport.
“Jets and planes will still fly over houses and neighborhoods,” Terry said, noting that development alone will not eliminate residents’ concerns.
The FAA has final authority over flight operations at the airport. Terry said any overnight flight ban would likely include exceptions for emergency aircraft.
The county has not said whether commissioners would reconsider last month’s vote.