Fed up with misinformation and “harassment” over the airport expansion, Carroll County Commissioner Dean Minnich is turning to a federal lobbying group for help.
To help residents better understand that expanding the Carroll County Regional Airport is good for the county, Minnich arranged for the National Organization to Insure a Sound-controlled Environment to talk with commissioners.
He says baseless stories, like a recent one about planes possibly dumping fuel on nearby neighborhoods, have been settled before, and only create chaos.
“My frustration is with the way the information has been handled,” Minnich said. “Because of the repetition and persistence of harassment ? because that?s what I think it is ? people have been able to alarm others who only read the newspaper.”
To get the correct information out, NOISE, comprised of cities, counties and corporations across the country, has brought city officials to speak with the Congressional Aviation Committee, said Dennis
McGrann, the group?s executive director.
“A lot of our members, many times they?ve gone through numerous battles, and public debates, and misinformation campaigns and people saying things that over again are repackaged, trying to advance a particular agenda,” McGrann said. “Many of our members get tired of that and want to have direct access to the people who make the decisions, so that?s what we do.”
But resident Ron Buczkowski disagreed with Minnich, saying all the information used comes from the county and “other Web sites.”
“Our group hasnever spread misinformation,” Buczkowski says. “The commissioners surround themselves with aviation officials who tell them this expansion is a wonderful thing. The majority of Carroll County residents don?t want this.”
Opponents are only bringing legitimate concerns to officials? attention, he said.
And because he feels county officials don?t listen to opponents repeated concerns anymore, they are forced to go through the media, Buczkowski said.
Minnich?s concern is that opponents may have already muddled the information so much that it may be too late to join NOISE.
