Tweed-New Haven Airport will be rolling out a new program to address concerns from neighbors in the area.
The initiative is the Residential Indoor Air program and will offer more than 800 medical-grade air purifiers to eligible residents.
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WATCH HEREThomas Cavaliere, director of community engagement at Tweed, said the program’s rollout will begin in July and is mainly in response to neighbor concerns surrounding odor that were brought up at Tweed’s community meeting, last year.
“What we did was look at all the homes in closest proximity to the airport and we really wanted to capture as many homes as we could and so that’s where we landed at the 815 number,” Cavaliere said.
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SIGN UP He added the air quality at the airport is similar to the air quality measured at the 11 monitors across the City of New Haven, but airport officials still felt it was necessary.
“We are one of the fastest growing airports in the United States and we continue to move forward with our plans in advancing the construction of a new terminal and in the meantime there are a variety of areas where we continue to make investments to ensure that our growth is responsible and is keeping the community at the center,” he said.
Jeanne Candela, who has lived near the airport for decades, said she noticed the air quality worsened, particularly after new carriers arrived at Tweed.
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“The middle of the day, maybe even 2 - 3 o’clock from outside, it's almost like you don’t want to be out there you know,” Candela said.
Candela added she’s taken advantage of the other sound proofing methods the airport has offered including insulating her attic and installing new windows, and would likely accept the free air purifier.
Other neighbors of the Glen Cove neighborhood believe the air purifiers are a band-aid to a larger issue.
In response, Mayor Justin Elicker encouraged eligible residents to be open to the program.
“We’re responding to community concerns, we want to make sure that we provide opportunities for residents to feel safe and feel that air quality is of high quality. Second, indoor air quality regardless of where people live is oftentimes a pretty significant problem,” Elicker said.
Eligible residents will receive information in the mail.
