The Helipad Question

This article first appeared in the 8/15/18 edition of The North Shore Leader.

By Loriann Cody

At the recent Village of Centre Island (CI) board meeting (August 8, 2018) the Village Trustees voted to continue the moratorium on new requests for helicopter landings and take-offs and helipads within the Village. The adoption of Local Law 2-2018, simply extended the provisions of Local Law 2-2017 for a six-month period with the option of an additional 90-days. The Village has retained airport and aviation consultants as it looks to review how local helicopter activity impacts residents.

Helicopter activity is not normally associated with our local area, and the amount of existing helipads on Centre Island is low (one resident reported 4 helipads). But the 1-1/2 hour discussion that took place at the last CI board meeting about this topic shows that this may be a hot-button issue.

Most of our local villages already have laws that prohibit or restrict the use/take-off or landing of aircraft as well as the building of structures for said aircraft: Bayville, Brookville, Old Brookville, Upper Brookville, Oyster Bay Cove, Cove Neck, Mill Neck, Muttontown, Lattingtown and Matinecock.

There are New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) guidelines for establishment or modification of privately owned airports and heliports. According to the NYSDOT, the first step in airport or heliport establishment or modification is FAA airspace review and approval, which examines potential impacts on nearby aviation facilities and reserves airspace for the heliport. The request for a helipad determination must come from the local municipality and include a 

local legislative resolution that authorizes a representative to submit a request directly to the DOT. The NYSDOT would then review the proposal with regard to State standards and issue a determination. State standards require adequate approach surface clearance over public thoroughfares (roads, railroads, navigable waterways, etc.) and compatibility with publicly owned buildings.

A quick scan of Google satellite imagery shows only one helipad (Billy Joel’s), but there has been helicopter activity (such as take-off and landings) at other locations on Centre Island. One location has enough activity (sometimes as many as two or three landings/takeoffs a day), that has garnered some resident’s ire.

For the state DOT to make a determination on allowing a new helipad/or changing an existing one, the following items must be received: municipal resolution requesting determination, topographical map showing site and site plan, FAA Airport Space Determination (available only from the Federal Aviation Administration), proponents letter of request to municipality, and a municipal statement of owner consent. 

Stay tuned.