Update: July 27, 2010
Challenge to Hillsboro Airport Third Runway Proposal Update
On July 12, 2010 attorneys Sean Malone and Andrew Orahoske submitted an Opening Brief to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Case No. 10-70718 Michelle Barnes, Patrick Conry, and Blaine Ackley v. the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) with the Port of Portland intervening on behalf of the FAA challenging the Environmental Assessment (EA) and the Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the Hillsboro Airport Parallel Runway Project, as issued by the FAA on 1/8/10
In presenting the case, Counsel for the Petitioners stated "Simply put, this case is about the FAA's failure to take a hard look at the environmental effects of significantly increasing the capacity of the Hillsboro Airport by constructing a third runway, a taxiway, and four taxiway exits. These capacity-enhancing developments will almost double the capacity of Oregon's busiest airport. Despite the dramatic increase in the capacity at the Hillsboro Airport, the FAA maintains that there will be no increase in aircraft operations or an increase in the environmental impacts associated with the aircraft operations."
The primary assertions in the brief address the following issues:
- Under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the FAA failed to take "a hard look at the reasonably foreseeable effects of operating the Hillsboro Airport even though the capacity of the airport will almost be doubled with the significantly increased capacity."
- Under NEPA, because this project would significantly affect the quality of the human environment, the FAA further erred by not preparing a more comprehensive environmental analysis, referred to as an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
- Under NEPA, the FAA also failed to take a hard look at the cumulative effects of the project including zoning changes and the potential for a new tower.
- On 6/30/10 the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) issued a Final Opinion reversing the City of Hillsboro's airport zone changes on the grounds that they were unconstitutional.
- According to the FAA record, following the revelation that the proposed third runway lacked appropriate line of sight from the existing tower, one official recommended canceling the project due to safety concerns. A third email stated that "this may be a backdoor way to get a new tower paid for by AIP."
- Under NEPA, the FAA failed to prepare a reasonable range of alternatives because "the two action alternatives are environmentally indistinguishable."
- The FAA failed to hold the statutorily mandated public hearing.
Petitioners also stated, in their opening brief, that "[u]nlike commercial airports where flights are either departures or arrivals, the Hillsboro Airport is a general aviation airport that is subject to the continual presence of air traffic. Hillsboro Airport is heavily utilized for pilot training, which requires that helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft often engage in low-flying exercises, hovering and continual circling of homes and neighborhoods over the course of a single flight operation. Local operations (consisting largely of training activity) currently represent about 68% of total operations. Flight training also includes a practice of continually landing and taking off, referred to as 'touch and go'. The extraordinary amount of training is a result of the ever-growing Hillsboro Aviation, which operates out of the Hillsboro Airport."
In 2008, Hillsboro Airport logged 259,263 total operations. This equates to almost three flights per year for every man, woman and child living in Hillsboro. Of this number, over 173,000, more than two thirds of the total, were training flights. As a result of this excessive aviation activity both urban and rural Hillsboro and Washington County residents are routinely subjected to the excessive noise and pollution generated by this airport.
City of Hillsboro and Port of Portland Appeal LUBA Decision
The Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) on June 30, 2010 in Barnes v. City of Hillsboro and the Port of Portland, LUBA No. 2010-011 reversed the Hillsboro Airport Overlay Zones and Airport Use Zone on all three counts:
- Unconstitutional takings of private property without just compensation.
- Unconstitutional delegation of governmental power to the non-elected, non-representative Port of Portland.
- Failure to comply with State Planning Goal 12 requiring a traffic impact study.
In response, the City of Hillsboro and the Port of Portland, on July 21, 2010, announced their intent to appeal LUBA's decision. The City of Hillsboro and the Port of Portland now have until 8/11/10 to submit their brief. Bill Kabeiseman will continue to be the lead attorney on my behalf. He and his legal team have until 9/1/10 to prepare their brief.
Click here for the full text of the LUBA Decision (PDF, 30 pages).
Important Airport Meetings
The next meeting of the Hillsboro Airport Issues Roundtable (HAIR) is scheduled for Wednesday 8/4/10 from 5:30 to 7:30 at the Hillsboro Civic Center, Rooms 113 B & C, 150 E Main St., Hillsboro. There should be an opportunity for public comment.
It is noteworthy that HAIR formulated and strongly advocated in favor of the airport zone changes which were found to be in violation of the of the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution and Art.1, Sec. 18 of the Oregon Constitution. This same group is promoting a publicly funded third runway, taxiway, and four taxiway exits at the Hillsboro Airport primarily to serve for-profit flight training activities and general aviation hobbyists.
Citizen Participation Organization (CPO) 9 is sponsoring a Port of Portland speaker at their Monday 8/9/10 meeting scheduled for Monday 8/9/10 at 7:00 PM at the Public Services Building, Room 140, 155 N. First Ave.in Hillsboro.
Please Donate
Please give generously. Unlike the Port of Portland, the City of Hillsboro, the FAA, and the US Department of Transportation, I do not have taxpayer dollars available to subsidize these legal challenges thus I am relying on your support. Use the Donate button on this page to contribute via a secure PayPal account. Alternatively, donations can be sent to:
Oregon Aviation Revealed
PO Box 838
Banks, Oregon 97106
| ©2010 Oregon Aviation Revealed | Contact Us |  Jump to Top |