09-18-2019 ARC Meeting PacketCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS
AIRPORT RELATIONS COMMISSION
September 18, 2019
6:00 p.m.
City of Mendota Heights- 1101 Victoria Curve
1. Call to Order
2. Roll Call
3. Approval of Minutes
a. Approval of Minutes of the August 21, 2019 Meeting
4. Unfinished and New Business
a. Follow-up to Resident Noise Complaints
b. November ARC Meeting Date
c. ARC Meeting Agenda Order and Public Comment Placement
d. Review of Airport Operational Statistics (link: https://www.macenvironment.org/reports/)
i. Complaint Information
ii. Runway Use
iii. Turboprop Charts
iv. Noise Monitor Charts
5. Acknowledge Receipt of Various Reports/Correspondence
6. Upcoming Meetings
a. Planning Commission 09/24/2019 7:00 pm
b. City Council Meeting 10/02/2019 7:00 pm
c. City Council Meeting 10/16/2019 7:00 pm
7. Public Comments
8. Commissioner Comments
9. Adjourn
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CITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS
DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA
AIRPORT RELATIONS COMMISSION MINUTES
August 21, 2019
The regular meeting of the Mendota Heights Airport Relations Commission was held on
Wednesday, August 21, 2019, at Mendota Heights City Hall.
1. Call to Order
Chair Sloan called the meeting to order at 6:05 pm.
2. Roll Call
The following commissioners were present: David Sloan, Gina Norling, William Dunn, Sally
Lorberbaum, Jim Neuharth, and Kevin Byrnes. Absent: Arvind Sharma
Also present: Assistant City Administrator Cheryl Jacobson, and City Administrator Mark McNeill.
3. Approval of Minutes
a. Approval of Minutes of the July 17, 2019 Meeting
Motion by Lorberbaum/Second by Neuharth to approve the minutes of the July 17, 2019 ARC
meeting. Motion carried 6-0.
4. Unfinished and New Business
a. ARC Visioning Discussion.
Mr. McNeill said that the change in venue for the meeting—in the City Council
Chambers rather than the normal conference room—was intended to provide an
opportunity for the Commission to think about the purpose and mission of the ARC, in a
“mini retreat” setting. Is the reason for the ARC the same now, as compared to when it
was created in 1993--both planes and technology have changed. Ms. Jacobson asked
what people think of the airport when they move to Mendota Heights, and how that
may change over time.
Chair Sloan said that he had previously with the City Administrator and Assistant City
Administrator about this discussion, and felt that the Commission should consider it.
Commissioner Lorberbaum stated that a lot has changed—planes were louder before.
She felt that the Commission needed to continue to monitor noise, and let people know
that they continue to monitor. She referenced invitations to the State Representative.
She said that we have a variety of stakeholders.
Commissioner Byrnes said that we should continue to monitor, but asked how that
information was to be used? Is it to be used for a newcomer to the community, or a
long-time resident?
Ms. Jacobson said that the packet information was available on the City’s website, and
that noise complaints could be lodged on the NOC website. She asked if there was a
better way of doing that.
Airport Relations Commission Minutes
July 17, 2019
Page 2
Commissioner Norling asked about televising the ARC meetings, and said that there
hadn’t been a public explanation of the charts in a long time. Ms. Jacobson said that
that could be done, but that it should be when there is a speaker who would be of
interest to the general public.
Commissioner Neuharth asked how they could get the public more involved.
Commissioner Lorberbaum asked if a table could be provided at the annual Parks
celebration, and asked if the Parks celebration could held on Sundays every other year,
so that more people could attend. Commissioner Byrnes asked if the same could be
done for the concerts in the park. Commissioner Dunn asked if ARC business cards
could be printed, so that those could be distributed.
Ms. Jacobson reviewed information which she had found in her research on the history
of the ARC. She asked if now was a good time to redefine the ARC? Should it focus
more on education? The causes of many of the complaints can’t be changed due to
construction or the weather. Mr. McNeill noted that some of the complaints about
turboprops are actually military aircraft, for which there is no change possible.
He also reminded those present of the changes in technology for reporting complaints
over the years. Ms. Jacobson spoke about the complaint center at MAC, and that it
doesn’t allow for commentary; rather, it just records location and time. The phone
complaint line at MAC does allow for that, and those complaints for forwarded to the
City.
Chair Sloan said that there are only a few things which we can control. He believes that
the ARC should focus on education.
Commissioner Byrnes said that monitoring noise is OK when things are stable, but
questioned whether the ARC needs to meet monthly when it is just producing charts?
He felt that it could meet quarterly. Chair Sloan and Commissioner Norling agreed that
quarterly meetings would be fine, if the monthly charts could be reviewed at those
times.
Resident Roger Grabowski of the Friendly Hills neighborhood appeared. He said that he
has lived there for 30 years, and thinks that the aircraft noise over the past two months
has been significant. He said that it is impacting his life negatively. He wondered if the
new Vikings Training Facility in Eagan was the cause of change?
Commissioner Neuharth suggested following up with MAC to see if there were changes
shown at the monitor 13 location. Mr. Grabowski left his e-mail address for a response,
and departed the meeting.
The Commission discussed follow-up for this individual, and other future similar
questions. It was determined that an email would work, when it is a joint response from
the Chair, and staff. The ARC would be cc:d.
Airport Relations Commission Minutes
July 17, 2019
Page 3
Regarding future meetings, Commissioner Norling stated that she would be interested
in having the FAA speak about how they train their controllers.
Mr. McNeill asked for follow-up on the quarterly meetings concept. Chair Sloan
suggested to go to every other month, when they could follow the NOC meetings. The
ARC could start that schedule in September and November, although the November
meeting would conflict with the night meeting that NOC has scheduled, which is on
November 20 the same day as the ARC meeting.
b.Review of Airport Operational Statistics
i.Complaint Information. Complaint charts were reviewed. Chair Sloan noted that
complaints in Mendota Heights were up this year—July, 2019 was 286, vs. 210
for the same month last year
ii.News Articles—Commissioner Byrnes stated that meeting every other month
was a problem when searching for timely news articles, and so hadn’t been able
to prepare any.
iii.Turboprop Charts. Commissioner Neuharth said that his charts looked to be
good. He said that departures north of the corridors were about 1/3 of the
Upper Control Limit. He also said that turboprops were inconsistent.
iv.Noise Monitor Charts. Commissioner Norling stated that runways 12 L and 12 R
were impacted by summer construction. She said that there were twenty five
more hours of maintenance spent on 12 L than on 12 R, which impacts flight
patterns.
Commissioner Dunn reported that 18 of the top 30 noise events were military C-
130s. He said that those weren’t getting noisier, but that the other planes were
getting quieter. The C-130’s register between 87-91 decibels.
Chair Sloan noted that total complaints were up this summer—286 complaints
were registered in July this year, versus 210 last July.
5.Public Comments
No other public comments were received.
6.Commissioner Comments
None
7.Adjourn
Motion Neuharth/Second Norling to adjourn at 7:43 pm.
Airport Relations Commission Minutes
July 17, 2019
Page 4
Minutes Taken By:
Mark McNeill
City Administrator
City of Mendota Heights
DATE: September 18, 2019
TO: Mendota Heights Airport Relations Commission
FROM: Cheryl Jacobson, Assistant City Administrator
SUBJECT: November ARC Meeting Date
At the August ARC meeting, the Commission discussed moving to a quarterly or every other
month meeting schedule. Commissioners decided that for the remainder of 2019, meetings
would be held in September and November.
The November ARC meeting falls on the same day (November 20) as the Noise Oversight
Committee (NOC) meeting. Normally this would not be an issue, but the NOC meeting will be
held in the evening, with agenda review beginning at 6:00 pm and the meeting beginning at
6:30 pm.
ACTION REQUIRED
Given the conflict with the NOC meeting, the Commission should consider rescheduling the
November ARC meeting.
Item 4b
DATE: September 18, 2019
TO: Mendota Heights Airport Relations Commission
FROM: Cheryl Jacobson, Assistant City Administrator
SUBJECT: ARC Meeting Agenda Order
Staff is proposing a change to the ARC meeting agenda order. Currently, Public Comments fall
near the end of the agenda order. Staff is proposing to move the public comment period higher
in the order and recommends that Public Comments fall after the Approval of Minutes.
The proposed ARC meeting agenda would be:
1.Call to Order
2.Roll Call
3.Approval of Minutes
4.Public Comment
5.Unfinished and New Business
6.Acknowledge Receipt of Various Reports/Correspondence
7.Upcoming Meetings
8.Commissioner Comments
9.Adjourn
ACTION REQUIRED
The Commission should discuss the proposed change to the agenda order and approve or deny
the change.
Item 4c
Complaints by Location—By Month
(2018, 2019)
2018 Mpls Eagan Edina MH Blmgtn
January 84 21 10 7 5
February 86 21 18 7 3
March 102 27 16 10 5
April 120 31 10 12 8
May 216 45 15 19 14
June 207 83 20 23 11
July 270 64 50 22 13
August 326 67 58 25 13
September 200 66 19 29 9
October 126 47 17 18 9
November 80 26 16 8 5
December 88 33 7 7 5
2019 Mpls Eagan Edina MH Blmgtn
January 91 40 15 9 6
February 51 28 4 4 3
March 91 42 17 11 11
April 133 38 19 21 12
May 136 53 17 15 8
June 218 89 20 31 12
July 271 67 28 26 16
August 242 96 32 30 21
September
October
November
December
Location = Complainants
Percent of All Departures by Location
(2018, 2019)
2018
Mpls/
Richfield
30R
Eagan
12R
Edina
30L
MH
12L
Blmgtn
17
January 26% 4% 30% 8% 31%
February 23% 5% 29% 10% 33%
March 18% 9% 24% 15% 35%
April 25% 6% 28% 11% 27%
May 20% 5% 17% 17% 41%
June 11% 8% 10% 24% 46%
July 27% 5% 29% 13% 26%
August 25% 6% 24% 14% 31%
September 15% 8% 14% 21% 41%
October 25% 7% 27% 14% 27%
November 24% 7% 31% 12% 27%
December 20% 7% 20% 14% 39%
2019
Mpls/
Richfield
30R
Eagan
12R
Edina
30L
MH
12L
Blmgtn
17
January 28% 17% 33% 15% 8%
February 21% 12% 28% 14% 24%
March 26% 5% 31% 9% 29%
April 21% 11% 24% 15% 29%
May 17% 11% 19% 19% 34%
June 18% 8% 19% 19% 36%
July 18% 23% 22% 27% 8%
August 21% 6% 25% 15% 34%
September
October
November
December
Item 4d.i
August Complaints August Night Departures
2018 2019 2018 2019
Minneapolis 8,163 7,596 128 191
Eagan 2,870 3,829 182 266
Edina 614 422 187 337
Mendota Heights 589 494 134 192
Bloomington 115 207 78 9
Total 12,351 12,548 709 995
326 67 58 25 13242963230 21
25%
6%
24%
14%
31%
21%
6%
25%
15%
34%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Mpls Eagan Edina MH Blmgtn Percent of All DeparturesNumber of LocationsLocation
August Complaints by Location and Departures By Location
Complaints 2018 Complaints 2019