By Andrea Uhde
The Cincinnati Enquirer

About 160 people turned out Tuesday night to look at a preliminary map of "noise contours" at Lunken Airport. Few of them seemed happy.

Bob Bibb, president of the Linwood Community Council, said he was "disgusted" because his community doesn't show up on the map.

"There's no way we can be outside the contours," Bibb said. "We're the most affected area in Cincinnati. It (airport noise) wakes me up constantly. You can't sit with the doors open and watch TV."

Mary Jo Vandenberg, president of the Mount Lookout Civic Club, branded the meeting a "dog and pony show."

"The other day I had a guy flying so low over my house I could read the numbers on the plane without field glasses," she said.

Residents near the airport and Cincinnati officials met at Ault Park Pavilion in Mount Lookout to go over the preliminary map of the noise contours. The contours are areas where 24-hour noise levels hit certain ranges. They are made by computer simulations and then checked with noise monitors.

The map viewed Tuesday is part of a $250,000 study, paid mainly with federal funds, that began in January 2002 and is scheduled to be finished early next year. Tuesday's meeting was the second of three workshops during the process. A final meeting will be held in early 2004.

Bob Vickery, supervising engineer for Cincinnati's Department of Transportation and Engineering, said feedback has been good to get, even if negative.

"Hopefully, it was beneficial for individuals. We've tried to be inclusive," he said.

If approved by the Federal Aviation Administration, the study would clear the way for the airport to receive federal funds for noise mitigation. Such programs at other airports, including Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, have included land buyouts and insulating existing houses against noise.

To qualify, a residence or business must be inside a certain contour that registers a 65-decibel day/night level - nearly the equivalent to hearing a vacuum cleaner from 10 feet away for 24 hours a day. And the airport must be registered for commercial service - Lunken is not.

According to the map, Lunken's 65-decibel level stays very close to the airport property, with some areas sticking out to the northeast and southwest and to the south along Kellogg Avenue. Another map projecting what the contours will be in 2007 shows little change, although the 65-decibel area grows somewhat.

Doug Adams, chairman of the Lunken Neighborhood Coalition, called the map "deceptive," and said it doesn't show all areas impacted by high noise levels.

To complain about noise at Lunken, residents can call 352-4070 or e-mail noise.study@cincinnati-oh.gov.

E-mail auhde@enquirer.com