Con Ed Power Lines, Airplane Noise Dominate CB 11 Discussion at Meeting

Community Board 11 members discussed a proposal to relocate Con Edison’s electrical lines and airplane noise over Bayside during the group’s first meeting of 2013.

At November’s meeting, board members discussed a proposal for Con Ed to place its electric lines under ground after Hurricane Sandy left lines strewn all over city streets and residents without power for days.

CB 11 Chairman Jerry Iannece said the utility responded to a letter he wrote on the matter.

Con Ed said it would cost $5 to $6 million per mile to bury the lines as well as $7,500 per household to connect to the underground line.

“Personally, I think they should pay for it,” Iannece said. “They have a monopoly, so I think they have a responsibility. I think our elected officials should push for this. If Con Ed is making billions of dollars, I think they can afford it.”

The board also discussed an ongoing flight pattern out of LaGuardia Airport that has resulted in planes flying low over northeast Queens every few minutes.

“It’s not over no matter what you may have read,” said Janet McEneaney, who has led a local initiative to halt the flight pattern. “In fact, the real work is just beginning. We don’t know whether the FAA has implemented the [pattern] or if there was a comment period. It’s an unbelievably recalcitrant federal agency. But the Port Authority is susceptible to political pressure from state legislators.”

McEneaney said local elected officials, such as state Sen. Tony Avella, D-Bayside, plan to introduce bills to curb airplane noise from LaGuardia.

CB 11 member Melvyn Meer and Chairman Jerry Iannece both said they thought the board should vote on a resolution opposing the flight pattern.

“Some of our elected officials would have us believe that the airport problem has been solved or reduced,” board member Frank Skala said. “That’s a lie. The planes are still going overhead.”

At the meeting, Iannece said that a plan to demolish the former Scobee Diner site in Little Neck and build a retail center in its place would be discussed by CB 11 in the spring.