Commercial airlines aren’t needed here

I am against the idea of bringing commercial aircraft service to Everett (Jan. 17 Herald article “Lobbying begins to bring airline service to Paine Field”). The increase in airplane traffic in the area surrounding Paine Field would be an unwarranted disturbance to the people who live here. Boeing and Goodrich were there before I moved to Washington, so I can’t (and in fact don’t) object to the current level of operations, but I would object to any increase.

Former Paine Field commissioner Hank Robinett says, “We need to start somewhere.” That is precisely what we don’t need to do. If we don’t start down the path to commercial airline service out of Paine Field, we won’t get into a situation with a lot of airliners overhead, a situation that we then can’t get out of.

Mr. Hoban, CEO of Coast Management Co., says that proximity to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is partly responsible for the industrial growth of the Kent Valley, and I’m sure he’s right. But do we want Snohomish County to become paved over and covered with warehouses like once-green Kent Valley? I don’t.

Lynnwood