By MATT BOWER

While the T.F. Green Airport expansion project is well under way, with some portions even completed, there is still much work to be done.

That was the premise of a presentation delivered to the City Council Monday night by the Rhode Island Airport Corp. (RIAC).

Peter Frazier, general counsel for RIAC, spoke on behalf of the corporation’s president and CEO, Kelly Fredericks, who was ill and unable to attend.

“We’re here tonight to provide an overview and update of the airport expansion program and where we are,” Frazier began. “This five-year program was started last year with the demolition of Hangar 1 and the installation of EMAS [Engineered Materials Arrestor System] at the end of Runway 16.”

The EMAS is used to slow down an aircraft that overruns the runway. It is comprised of crushable concrete blocks designed to decelerate an aircraft by crushing under the weight of the aircraft and slowing it to a stop.

According to a December 2014 construction update posted on the airport’s website, www.pvdairport.com, the Runway 16 end safety improvements project, which is now complete, included the installation of a new blast fence, drainage improvements, security fencing, miscellaneous improvements to navigational aids (NAVAIDS) and reconfiguration of an airplane taxi lane to meet Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) standards.

The Hangar 1 demolition project, which was completed Aug. 4, 2014, included the replacement of some existing pavement areas with turf, installation of a security fence, the realignment of an airport perimeter service road and replacement of a few aircraft tie-down anchors. 

Construction of a new Deicer Management System was completed in October 2014 and is now in the equipment testing stage. The system includes a gate de-icing collection system at the passenger terminal, a designated de-icing collection area for cargo, tenant and transient aircraft, and an anaerobic digestion system that will treat collected fluid prior to discharge into the Warwick Sewer Treatment Facility. In addition, methane produced through the biological treatment process will be used to generate heat for the treatment process and heat for the facility.

“The system is targeted to be operational by March,” Frazier said. “Presently, we are collecting [de-icing material] at all catch basins. We are collecting and diverting glycol-laden water, which is being stored but not yet treated.”

Frazier explained that more glycol-impacted water must be collected before treatment can begin.

“It features miles upon miles of pipes,” he said of the system. “This is the most advanced technological means of glycol collection in New England, and only one of four [such systems] in the country.”

Ward 9 Councilman Steve Merolla praised RIAC for being on track with the De-icer Management System.

“I’m glad to see you’re on target for March with the glycol plant,” he said. “I praise you for that and for getting the $26 million to put that facility in place.”

Projects that have been started but are not yet complete include the relocation of the Winslow Park recreation facilities used by local softball and soccer leagues; Runway 34 end safety improvements; the Residential Sound Insulation Program (RSIP); and the Residential Voluntary Land Acquisition Program (VLAP).

“We started the Winslow field construction last year and [the park] should be open this July,” Frazier said.

The new location along Airport Road will feature four regulation softball fields, two practice softball fields, three soccer fields, a walking trail, and a new concession stand, as well as a “state-of-the art Tot Lot” to replace the existing two playground sites being removed.

According to the December 2014 construction update, most of that work has already been completed, including the majority of gas and electric utility relocations; installation of soccer field irrigation systems, as well as the grading and sodding of those fields; and the pouring of the foundation of the concession stand. The softball fields continue to be graded and have their irrigation systems installed. Construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of June 2015.

“We have coordinated with both the soccer and softball leagues and they are ecstatic with the design,” Frazier said.

The relocation of Winslow Park facilities has not been without its share of obstacles, however.

RIAC received complaints from neighbors whose homes were being covered in dust and dirt from construction work of the fields.

“We hire the best and pay the best, but when we were sodding the soccer fields, we had a drought followed by high winds, which created dust storms that affected the neighbors,” Frazier said. “Quite a bit of fill was needed for the field conditions, which resulted in some big dirt piles.”

Merolla said the relocation of the Winslow Park playing fields would have had better results if RIAC were willing to spend some more money to move the playing fields to the Community College of Rhode Island Warwick campus instead of at the end of the short runway, as initially intended.

“I think it would have cost less and there would have been less problems, like not having to deal with tree removal,” he said.

RIAC was also criticized when it moved an air quality monitor that had been in place at the site of the new Winslow Park playing fields.

“When constructing the Winslow fields, we didn’t realize it would take almost enacting a law to move the air monitor, which is now in a temporary location and is in the process of being moved to a permanent location,” Frazier said. “We’re going to host another workshop at the end of January, beginning of February to talk about the air monitor location.”

Frazier said the air-monitoring program has not been suspended and that the machine was only down for two days due to maintenance and being moved to a new location.

“The monitoring station needs to be moved back to as close to where it was before in order to maintain the accuracy of data collection,” Merolla said. “Cancer rates are elevated in the area at the end of the long runway. The cancer rates are higher in Warwick than the Rhode Island rate, and the Rhode Island rate is higher than the national rate.”

Frazier said part of the Winslow Park relocation will involve the installation of a new traffic signal at the intersection of Airport Road and the access drive to the new facility, which will be the only means of vehicular access to the park.

“There will be no access to Lake Water Drive, but there will be a gate there if emergency vehicles need to get in,” he said.

Frazier said RIAC is also looking into the use of adaptive traffic lighting going from Post Road down to Hoxsie, which he described as the traffic signals being able to communicate with one another to maintain a smooth flow of traffic. He said RIAC is looking into working with the Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT), which may be able to provide funding.

Ward 3 Councilwoman Camille Vella-Wilkinson asked what would happen to the structures at the current Winslow Park facility after the leagues move to the new site.

“The fences will be recycled, the buildings will be razed, and the property will be reseeded to the city,” Frazier said.

The Runway 34 end safety improvements project involves construction of an EMAS runway safety area, reconstruction of approximately 1,650 feet of Runway 16-34, miscellaneous NAVAID improvements, and construction of significant wetlands mitigation improvement, which has been approved by both Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE).

According to the December 2014 construction update, the first season’s construction phase is expected to be completed this month, weather permitting. Construction will restart in the spring and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

Frazier said the extension of main Runway 5-23 to 8,700 feet will begin construction in 2016. As part of that extension, a portion of Main Avenue needs to be moved.

“We need to move Main Ave., and have purchased homes in order to do that,” he said.

Design of the Main Avenue relocation project, which includes property acquisition, demolition, and design of roadway elements such as paving, drainage, utility relocation, and traffic signals, began in late 2012 with a study to determine the alignment and properties that would be required to accommodate the runway extension.

According to the December 2014 construction update, the alignment was approved by RIDOT in early September 2013 and the 90 percent design submission has been received by RIAC and is under review by RIDOT, RIAC and the city. 

Frazier said the demolition of 14 homes, all of which were mandatory acquisitions, commenced in September 2014 and will continue through spring of 2015.

The project is expected to be out for construction bids in spring 2015, with construction expected to begin in mid-June 2015 and take approximately one year to complete.

“Our commitment to the city is that the existing Main Avenue will not be shut down until the new one is in place,” he said.

Frazier said it’s important there are no obstructions in the flight protection zone at the end of the runway extension, which means the acquisition and demolition of homes as well as the removal of trees.

“We are starting the tree removal in February and have sent out invitations to neighbors that will be impacted to come and share their concerns at an information session,” he said, referencing the availability held on Wednesday.

Vella-Wilkinson asked if any trees would be replanted, as they serve as a buffer to the airport and absorb some of the sound.

“There is no federal justification for the replanting of trees for [noise abatement] and by law, we can’t replant for aesthetic reasons,” Frazier said. “We put in natural grasses, but the [tree] replanting is quite limited.”

Frazier said there are 65 homes located within the flight protection zone that need to be acquired and demolished.

“We have already bought 17 homes and there are currently 13 in contract to be purchased,” he said. “Everyone that will be affected has already been contacted. More than 80 percent of the owners whose homes were acquired have found new properties in Warwick.”

According to the December 2014 construction update, the design for the runway extension has commenced and is approximately 35 percent complete. Project bids will be received in April 2016, with construction starting in early summer 2016. Project completion is anticipated for Dec. 7, 2017.

Frazier said the residential sound insulation program is well under way.

“There are 47 homes getting sound insulation treatment currently,” he said, as part of Phase 2, the first full phase of the program following a pilot phase of acoustical testing and sound insulation of 11 homes, which was completed in September 2014. “It’s a very aggressive schedule, but all homes will have received treatment before the runway opens, that’s what we’ve committed to.”

According to the December 2014 construction update, RIAC has contacted 120 homeowners who are eligible for Phase 2. Construction began in September 2014 with approximately 50 homes. As a result of a Phase 3 workshop conducted on Oct. 14, 2014, consultants continue to meet with eligible residents in this phase in an effort to move forward with home assessments and design. Anyone with questions may contact Bob Politto at the Noise Mitigation Office at 732-8320 for assistance.

Vella-Wilkinson asked about the eligibility of homes that have been in the noise abatement program for at least 10 years and may need upgrades.

“By and large, once a home has been soundproofed, it is ineligible for the program, unless there’s been a drastic change,” Frazier said. “We will conduct another study in 2018, following the opening of the longer runway, which will provide planes a better opportunity to land in a less impactful manner.”

Frazier said RIAC continues its efforts to acquire residential properties related to noise mitigation and the Runway 5-23 extension.

“We are in the process of purchasing 48 homes, on a voluntary basis, that are in the 70-decibel noise contour,” he said.

Demolition of several previously acquired homes and properties is currently underway. Anyone with questions on this program may call Nancy Brooks at the T.F. Green Acquisitions Offices at 401-732-8320.

Merolla asked if plans call for any of the acquired properties to be returned to the city, since every time RIAC acquires a property, the city loses revenue when it’s removed from the tax rolls.

“It depends on how the property is purchased,” Frazier said. “If we purchase the property for the flight protection zone, then it can’t be used for residential or commercial uses that would encourage the congregating of people.”

Merolla then asked, “Is it your intent to return those properties back to us on our rolls so we can regain the revenue?”

Frazier replied, “Yes, where we can.”

Vella-Wilkinson said the amount of houses being acquired for demolition is sizeable and requested that a list of the demolition schedule be provided to residents so they are aware of when demolition is taking place.

Ward 4 Councilman Joseph Solomon shared his concerns about having unprotected and unsecured recreation facilities and parking areas like Winslow Park located so close to the airport, which will eventually be handling international flights.

“I don’t see the correlation of parking spaces and residential areas close to international flights, with the events that are going on in the world today,” he said. “I feel very, very uncomfortable with allowing open space access to unsecured recreational facilities so close to the airport that will have international flights.”

Solomon asked if any such concerns had been considered when coming up with the design of the new Winslow Park.

“All plans have to be vetted by Homeland Security,” Frazier said.

“We need to give serious thought and planning into these areas,” Solomon said. “We need to be proactive, instead of reactive.”