From the issue of May 11, 2006.
Help Readington OK airport plan
To the editor:
Much of the news coverage regarding the future of Solberg Airport concentrates on the airport’s home township of Readington.
But if Solberg Airport becomes a jetport, the noise of take-offs and landings will also affect property values and quality of life in six bordering townships.
"As the jet flies," Solberg Airport’s property is three-quarters of a mile from Branchburg, and only a few miles from the borders of Bedminster, Tewksbury, Clinton, Raritan and Hillsborough townships.
I live in Branchburg about a mile and half from the airport. Small prop planes buzzing around have rarely been a bother. That may be about to change.
The Solberg family and their real estate development partners are now close to having all the FAA and DEP approvals necessary to expand their little airport into a jetport. Business jets would come and go about 300 feet over my home, creating sound levels on the ground in the 110 decibel range similar to a power saw.
Even four miles out from the airport, a business jet at 1,100 feet can generate 98 dB of sound on the ground.
The noise also has an economic effect. A 1997 study (Randall Bell) showed an average property value reduction of 27.4 percent in areas with noisy jetports.
On May 16, the voters of Readington will decide whether to make a $22 million bond available to preserve open space and forever hem in Solberg Airport, keeping it the way it is. The Solbergs, using national political consultants, have tried to confuse the issue by saying that they want to keep the airport as it is. This simply is not true just a few months ago they showed the township plans for a jet-ready airport, a second major runway and 500,000 square feet of office and hangar space.
As neighbors bordering Readington, we can’t vote in the May 16 airport referendum, but we can offer our support to vote "yes." With open space funding, the Readington property-tax impact would be as low as $60/year, but it would have a huge region-wide payback in property values and quality of life.
If you have friends in Readington, as I do, please ask them to vote "yes" on May 16.
Paul Crandall
Branchburg
March of Dimes deserves support
To the editor:
In 1938, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the March of Dimes and asked all Americans to join him in finding a cure for polio, the nation responded. In 2006, the threat is no longer polio but something equally devastating to affected families. The March of Dimes is leading the fight to find out why premature birth happens and what can be done to prevent it.
And as they did six decades ago, Americans are again responding.
On April 30, at the Rutgers Athletic Center in Piscataway, more than 3,000 Middlesex County residents participated in March of Dimes WalkAmerica, raising more than $390,000 for research into finding the causes of premature birth, a health problem that affects one in every eight babies born in America today.
Prematurity is a common, serious and costly problem that takes a tremendous emotional and physical toll on babies and their families. It is the leading cause of newborn death, and for those who survive, it could mean suffering from lifelong chronic health conditions or developmental disabilities. Research being conducted now could ensure that one day all babies are born healthy and full-term.
On behalf of the March of Dimes, I’d like to express our deepest appreciation for the residents of Middlesex County and their enthusiastic support of WalkAmerica. Premature babies need hope, love and you.
Thank you for responding so generously.
Dee Jones
Hillsborough

