About 40 neighbors of Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport May 2 night heard a trio of candidates for the vacant director’s job quizzed on how they would handle noise complaints, community distrust of the facility and the march toward switching to unleaded fuel for light aircraft.
One of the three – who each offered a wide range of experience in aviation – will replace controversial former director Paul Anslow.
Anslow left in November after critical comments he made about neighbors of the airport were disclosed to county officials. Anslow called people critical of airport operations “nut jobs” and brushed aside their complaints about airport noise.
Anslow’s comments were part of a 2021 transcript given to KUNC News as part of a public records request.
Candidate search
Jefferson County hired ADA Consulting to conduct a search for Anslow’s replacement and produced 41 applicants for the roughly $150,000 per year job. The three finalists stated their cases for hiring at a public forum Thursday at the airport’s Mt. Evans room at the RMMA main terminal.
Acting Airport Director Stephanie Sorbo – who is also Jefferson County’s chief financial officer – alluded to the anger some residents have toward the airport, especially when it comes to the noise its piston-powered aircraft can generate.
Superior and Boulder County have jointly sued Jefferson County to limit noise from touch-and-go operations conducted by aircraft at the airport.
“I know there is a lot of distrust in the community right now,” Sorbo told the audience. She asked them to be respectful to the candidates. “It takes a lot of courage to come here.”
Sorbo pointed out that there was a Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff in attendance and that anyone who was disruptive would be escorted out. As it turned out, little anger was displayed, and no one was forced out of the room.
Candidates speak
Yancy Wood and Karina Drees appeared in person while the third candidate, Erick Alan Dahl appeared virtually. Dahl recently had surgery and cannot travel.
All three said they were somewhat familiar with controversies surrounding the airport. All three said they would make considerable efforts to reach out to the airport’s stakeholders. Using unleaded fuel would be a welcome change at RMMA, all three said.
Dahl has held key positions from Aeronautical Analyst at the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency to Airport Director at St. Louis Downtown Airport, according to his resume.
He said that while he oversees day-to-day operations at RMMA, he would also be the public face of the facility, Dahl said.
“Really my job is to be an ambassador for the airport,” Dahl said. “It’s important for me to get out there…whether it’s talking to community groups…or HOAs…and understand the concerns about the airport.”
Drees is President of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, a space industry association representing the commercial space industry. Prior to that job, she was CEO and General Manager of Mojave Air & Space Port (MASP), a general aviation airport and licensed spaceport in California.
She said she wanted to get back to the on-the-ground management of an airport. “I feel like I am accomplishing something every day as an airport director,” Drees said.
She said in her first 100 days she would reach out to as many of the airport tenants and neighbors as possible. “What are their concerns and what can we address right now,” Drees said.
Drees said one of her strongest attributes is her honesty. “I am not a very good liar,” she said.
Wood is a retired Army officer with over 31 years in the aviation industry. He is also a consultant and managed the airport in Ada, Okla, according to his resume.
Wood, a Broomfield resident, said he views the airport from two different perspectives.
“I am seeing things both as a pilot and as one of the people living under its traffic pattern,” Wood said.
“I just would promise to be a good listener and dive into the issues through transparency and honesty,” he said.
The Jefferson County Commissioners were also slated to interview the three candidates. A job offer may be made to one of them within the next week or so, Corbo said.
We have lived just on the other side of 108th, in Countyside since 1985.
The last three years, the drone of constant airplanes has made us rethinking of staying. The drone of the things starts before sunrise and continues into the bloody damn night.
It gets SOOOO bad we cannot sit outside anymore! The planes NEVER STOP! It has become so bad, ppl around us are trying to sell their homes. WHY should we have to put up with this??? Please. PLEASE tell me why??
The noise has gotten so bad that we cannot sit outside. The plane noise starts before sunrise and goes on into the night.
We live on the other side of 108th.
We moved here in 1985. It was a haven. The airport was no problem.
Four years ago it started to get bad, now it is terrible.
Selling the house is hard because who wants to listen to all of this noise?