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Nearly 2000 Kearny High School Students Will No Longer Have to Fight Noise to Learn
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 12, 2010
CONTACT: Aaron Keyak
office: (202) 225-5061
cell: (202) 905-6361
email:
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Kearny, NJ – Today, Representative Steve Rothman (NJ-09),
a member of the House Appropriations Committee, was joined by Kearny’s
Mayor, the Superintendent of the Kearny School District, the Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA), and the Port Authority of New York and
New Jersey, at Kearny High School to recognize their hard fought
victory to secure $22,030,000 to renovate and soundproof the school.
Rep. Rothman has championed this project since the FAA first ruled that
Kearny High School was eligible to participate in its airport noise
mitigation improvement program in 2002.
"This is a great day for the students, teachers, parents, and taxpayers
of Kearny," said Rep. Rothman. "Today's kids and all future generations
of kids growing up in Kearny will be able to learn better and be more
successful because of the renovations we are announcing today. The
money for this project will come from the fees paid by the airlines and
their passengers. There is no general federal tax revenue being used
and this investment will create local jobs without adding a cent to our
federal, state, or local taxes."
During an eight year battle to make sure that Kearny High School
received these much needed funds, Rep. Rothman overcame intense
bureaucratic obstinance and finally convinced the FAA to fulfill the
promise it first made to Kearny in 2002.
“I am so pleased to announce that the Federal Aviation Administration
will be spending $22,030,000 to finally renovate and soundproof Kearny
High School. After working with my Congressional colleagues, the Port
Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the White House, to ensure
that the FAA fulfilled its obligations, I am now proud to announce that
construction will begin next month,” said Rep. Rothman. “For far too
long the students, teachers and administrators of Kearny High School
have been forced to endure the deafening sound of aircraft landing at
and taking off from Newark Liberty International Airport. Learning is
hard enough without the roar of jet engines directly overhead.”
Rep. Rothman did not accept the FAA’s delays or its attempts to keep these important funds from Kearny High School.
“For the last eight years, there were many stumbling blocks put in
front of this renovation and soundproofing – from disputes with the FAA
over the existence of an airplane noise problem at Kearny High School
to the FAA’s outright withdrawal of its commitment to this project. In
fact, in 2008, the FAA notified Kearny that they had changed their mind
and decided against renovating the school. This was unacceptable,” said
Rep. Rothman. “In order to make sure that the $22 million found its
rightful place, here in Kearny, I worked with officials from ALL levels
of the federal government. So today I am pleased to be able to thank
the new FAA Administrator, Randy Babbitt, and President Barack Obama
for helping make sure this promise was kept. Even if it took eight
years to accomplish!”
Kearny High School is located just five miles from Newark Liberty
International Airport, where there have been more than one million
flights since 2007. The $22,030,000 will be used to mitigate the impact
of aircraft noise at the high school by adding a state of the art,
central air-conditioning system, as well as soundproofing all windows
and doors, plus installing a new heating and ventilation system at the
high school.
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