Poll: Area favors cargo airport

Tuesday, 17 April 2007

By KENT JACKSON

A strong majority of residents in Greater Hazleton have a favorable opinion of the proposed cargo airport, which they think will improve the region’s quality of life, according to a new poll.

The poll commissioned by WYLN-TV asked 400 residents their opinions about the airport, but also asked them to rank the importance of growth and their concerns about potential noise, pollution and traffic from the airport.

For the poll conducted for WYLN by Precision Design, survey takers dialed telephone numbers chosen at random from the Hazleton and Luzerne County directories.

Of those surveyed, 183 lived in Greater Hazleton, 95 in Wilkes-Barre, 35 in Mountain Top, 16 in Kingston, 15 in Pittston and Nanticoke and 41 lived elsewhere.

Asked to rate their overall opinion about the airport on a scale of 1 to 10 where 10 indicated strong support, the average response was 6.8.

Among the 183 residents from Greater Hazleton, the average response was 6.45.

Asked if they thought the airport will improve the region’s quality of life, 69
percent said “Yes.” Among the residents of Greater Hazleton, 61 percent said “Yes.”

The survey contained a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percent and defined Greater Hazleton as Hazleton, West Hazleton, Hazle Township, Butler, Sugarloaf, Conyngham, Freeland, McAdoo, Weatherly and surrounding villages in Luzerne, northern Schuylkill, and parts of Carbon County.

“It’s overwhelming to me the people were in favor,” WYLN President Joseph Gans said.

Gans said U.S. Rep. Paul Kanjorski, D-11, asked him to participate on an expert panel when the airport first was suggested a decade ago.

“To me it’s a good thing. I think it can benefit the whole area, not just Hazleton, but the whole northeast sector of the United States.”

Survey takers told the people interviewed for the poll that the airport, proposed by Gladstone Partners LP, would result in 4,500 good-paying jobs and potentially spin off 160,000 jobs.

Seventy percent of people polled in Greater Hazleton said they believe young people will be able to find jobs and remain in the area because of the airport. From the broader survey, 73 percent answered “yes” to that question.

Asked about the importance of regional job creation to them, 96 of 183 people from Greater Hazleton rated job creation a 10 out of 10, the highest response to any question in the survey.

Another 71 percent of the people from Greater Hazleton said “Yes” when asked if they believe population growth to fill the jobs would be a good thing. For the broader survey, 77 percent answered “Yes” to that question.

Cultural growth rated a 10 with 68 people, while 85 gave a 10 to educational growth, 64 to recreational growth and 90 to commercial growth.

Greater Hazleton residents were more concerned about potential noise, pollution and traffic from the airport those from the wider area.

Using a rating where 10 was a great concern and 1 indicated no concern, Hazleton residents gave an average rating of 6.44 to traffic, whereas the rating of all respondents averaged 5.85.

State Rep. Todd Eachus, D-116, who favors constructing the airport, said the area has to develop roads to serve the airport.

Because they would be commercial roads, tolls could be charged to pay for the construction, Eachus said Monday evening while appearing on a WYLN special program with Don Pachence and members of the media.

People from Greater Hazleton surveyed about their concern for noise at the airport at 6.25 out of 10, according to the average, whereas the average concern for noise on the whole survey was 5.68.

Hazleton residents rated their concern about pollution at 6.43, compared to the overall rating survey average of 5.99.

The narrative compiled by Precision Designed indicated people responding to the surveys might have considered pollution from the airport and from possible companies that would open because of the airport.

Also, 73 percent of Greater Hazleton residents said Luzerne County should form an authority to build an manage the airport.
The percentage of all respondents who answered yes to that question was 68.

The Luzerne County commissioners took the first step toward forming an authority Jan. 31 the day that Gladstone Partners proposed an airport.

On March 14, the commissioners were expected to complete the final steps to forming an authority at a meeting in Hazleton, but they declined to do so.

While no questions on the survey asked about Paragon Adventure Park, five people when asked if they had additional comments said they were disappointed that the park would close if the airport were to be built.

After the show aired, Gladstone issued a printed statement that stated WYLN’s poll “cleary demonstatres the overwhelming public support for this project.”

“The results of the independent survey commissioned by WYLN regarding the Air Cargo Airport project are both encouraging and enlightening,” the released stated. “The overall approval rating of 63.75 percent of the 400 survey respondents and, in particular, the 33 percent (134 respondents) who answered ‘10’ signifying their strong support for building the air cargo airport attests to the community’s realization of the potential positive impact this project will have for the area.”

The program will be rebroadcast on WYLN tonight at 9. Viewers can also watch the special report at www.wyln.tv.