(Bloomberg) -- The tony town of East Hampton on New York’s Long Island has had enough of Wall Street’s Masters of the Universe flying in on noisy helicopters.
The town’s board is expected to vote to deactivate its airport and reopen it as a more limited facility that planes and helicopters can only land in with prior permission, according to a Tuesday press statement by Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc. The shift will give the town greater control over flight traffic at the airport, which has surged in recent years thanks to ride-share apps that make it easier to snag a seat on a helicopter or private plane at the last minute.
East Hampton has been considering legal options for cutting down on traffic since at least 2020, when a Federal Aviation Administration letter identified options the town had to cut down on noise. The town board spoke with parties including aviation attorney Cooley LLC, other consultants and stakeholders, as well as the broader community about its options, according to the statement.
“The majority of the public has indicated that allowing the airport to continue operating as it has been is unacceptable, and that traffic volume, noise, environmental, and safety concerns must be addressed,” according to the statement.
The town board is due to vote on the matter on Thursday. Under the recommended timeline, the airport would close on Feb. 28, and reopen as a private-use facility on March 4.
East Hampton, on the eastern end of Long Island, had a population of nearly 30,000 people as of April 2020, according to U.S. census data.
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
Advertisement