QC residents should come before jets

The proposal for jets and helicopters at Pegasus Airpark has met with opposition from surrounding residential neighborhoods. The Queen Creek Planning and Zoning Commission has its own guidelines with specific criteria that must be satisfied in order to win approval for this amendment. We are convinced that the Pegasus proposal cannot satisfy these criteria, and the conditional use amendment for jets and helicopters must be denied.

Zoning approval criteria #5: "The proposed use shall not be noxious or offensive by reason of vibration, noise, odor, dust, smoke or gas."

The commission and residents have been buried under an avalanche of technical information from Pegasus about the physics of sound properties, specifics of aircraft sizes, wing spans, landing, take-off and whatever else could be thrown into this aviation stew. The depth of aviation information and showmanship has been impressive, but it is still unconvincing because it all comes down to an increased impact of noise and vibration that is unwelcome and unacceptable to residents who live nearby. There is already increased air traffic from Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport, and it is critical to consider the additional negative impact of more jets and helicopters from Pegasus.

Zoning approval criteria #6: "The proposed use shall not be injurious to the use and enjoyment of the property in the immediate vicinity ... nor substantially diminish or impair the property values within the neighborhood."

Pegasus is surrounded by residential areas with close proximity to San Tan Mountain Regional Park and the new Horseshoe Park. Any Pegasus aircraft ends up flying over someone's home. This obviously takes away from the use and enjoyment of backyards and property as well as the enjoyment of outdoor activities.

Zoning approval criteria #8: "The proposed use shall not be detrimental to or endanger the public health, safety ... comfort or general welfare."

This proposal is simply not beneficial to the environment that we enjoy, and it is time to make the comfort and general welfare of the greater population a priority over the hobbies and entertainment of a few.

We urge Queen Creek town officials to follow their own "community vision" and mission statement, which states "Queen Creek desires to be something very different from the rest of the Phoenix metropolitan area." We urge all residents to voice their opposition to the jets and helicopters at Pegasus, and attend the meeting 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Town Hall.

Greg Clark has lived in Queen Creek for five years.