Naples Airport considers relocation due to noise complaints, growth restrictions

The Naples Airport in Florida is considering a move given the number of noise complaints and restrictions on growth. The Naples Municipal Airport (APF) has been around for decades, but without room to expand services and a community to think about, the Airport Authority is looking to move locations. The Naples Airport Authority participated in its first noise study in over 20 years. According to Naples Daily News, there were nearly 800 complaints from October 2021 to September 2022 and the airport officials hoped a study would find a solution to decrease that number. WINK News reported that the Naples Airport Authority is looking for a location that would elicit fewer noise complaints, provide better storm resiliency and room for commercial airline services, which the current location cannot accommodate.RELATED STORY:Naples airport conducting first noise study in over 20 years "It was built out east of the Gordon River in a swampy area where nobody would ever want to live, right?" said Zac Burch, Naples Airport Authority communications manager to WINK. "And obviously, over the following eight decades, that has changed tremendously." "We felt it was it was the right time to go forward and do a study that can look at what are the opportunities," Burch said to WINK. "What are the potential costs, or is there a location that would be available?" The Airport Authority is considering moving to eastern Collier County. If a new location is found, the board will need to approve it. If a location is approved, a move would still be a years-long process. While the major cause for a possible change in venue was the strong number of noise complaints from the community, many locals have mixed feelings about the decision to move, with online comments voicing criticism about the decision and complaints. Moving the airport would mean moving it out of city limits. The airport currently supports jobs in the local community and is a busy general aviation airport and economic driver in the region. But, with a 75,000-pound weight limit, the airport is limited in its current location and a move would allow it to rebuild to contain larger aircraft for commercial service. The Naples Airport Authority approved a study to explore potential sites for a new airport within Collier County. Residents can join a mailing list to hear the latest developments. Fox 4 Southwest Florida reported that the study would take six to nine months to complete and the area would not see its impact for at least a couple of years. Burch told Fox that despite a voluntary curfew from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. neighbors still hear aircraft throughout the night while the airport reports an 89.7 percent curfew compliance and has invested more than $10 million in noise programs since 2000. "Noise is always a concern with airports in general, including ours, so that was one potential opportunity to look for a place where we could minimize, reduce, or potentially eliminate those noise concerns," Burch said to Fox. The original noise study was conducted in 1987 and approved by the FAA in 1989. The original study recommended 10 operational and five land use recommendations, of these, 13 were approved by the FAA. The most recent study was conducted in 21997 and included 15 proposed actions for noise mitigation, 10 were granted outright approval, four were partially approved and one was disapproved. An amendment was added in a 1998 amendment to the NCP with a 24-hour ban on Stage 1 jet aircraft. APF was also the only airport in the country to complete a FAA Part 161 study to ban Stage 2 jet aircraft in 2001. Only two noise exposure map updates have been made since 1998 and a proposed study in 2010 was not completed since it was determined there was not a basis to modify the 1997 noise compatibility program. In place of an NCP update, voluntary measures like a curfew were implemented. Also, in April 2022 the airport addressed a nearly 40 percent increase in traffic by limiting access to fuel during certain hours in hopes of encouraging pilots to follow the voluntary curfew rules.RELATED STORY:Naples Airport bans fuel as noise complaints increase While the study is being conducted, the airport will still operate normally and in Naples, Florida.