The St. Pete-Clearwater Airport (or PIE as travelers know it) is seeing explosive growth. They just topped off the 5th year of double digit increases, have grown 370% over the past 11 years and will soon expand to 58 non-stop destinations. The airport is also in the works of adding a 12,000 square foot addition to the airport to add more areas for passengers to wait for their flights.
It is great news for travelers looking for a more affordable option to fly, but it worries some nearby homeowners in Safety Harbor and Clearwater.
The homeowners say planes flying over their homes are loud enough to rattle their windows, and they worry with the expansion things will only get noisier.
The jets make a sound Roy Bliven can only compare to one thing,“it sounds like the start of an earthquake.”
The planes fly right over Bliven’s Bermuda Court home.
The noise is even more startling when Bliven and his wife lounge by the pool, “The planes are so low sometimes, that it shakes me right out of the pool.”
Bliven and his back yard neighbor Keola Dietz hopes the airlines and airport will work with them to find a happy medium as PIE continues to expand.
“I hope there is going to be a cure in sight one of these days,” Bliven added.
St. Pete Clearwater Airport tells us they’ll be keeping a close eye on the airlines to make sure they’re not flying during “quiet hours” between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m.. That’s especially important for Dietz, who with a toddler, has learned the value of a good night’s rest. “Oh my goodness. The more sleep my son gets, the more sleep I get,” he joked.
The airport also hosts a quarterly meeting to talk about noise concerns. They tell us they take noise issues very seriously. The next noise abatement community meeting is April 19.
St. Pete-Clearwater International Aircraft has a noise hotline to report complaints. You can call (727) 453-7877 or complete this online Noise Complaint Form.
