NY Jets Helipad Plan Riles Neighbors

An application to build a helipad at the New York Jets training facility in Florham Park has hundreds of neighbors in Madison petitioning to stop the project.

Opponents cite concerns about noise and safety, and say it's unnecessary because Morristown Municipal Airport is about a mile away.

The application by Florham Park Helipad LLC to construct a helipad at 1 Jets Drive was scheduled to be heard at a Florham Park Planning Board meeting Monday night, but the application was adjourned until the board's May 30 meeting at the applicant's request.

An online petition by residents of the Oak Knoll neighborhood asking the Planning Board to reject the proposed helipad, which the petition says would serve as "accessory to the Commercial Athletic Training Facility currently operated by the NY Jets on an adjacent lot," showed 345 signatures as of Tuesday morning.

The petition was started by Madison resident Patrick Rowe, who is vice president of the Madison Board of Education and a Borough Council candidate.

"The helipad will add unnecessary noise pollution to the adjacent neighborhoods in Madison and Florham Park and create a safety hazard for the residents as well as the children who use the Madison Recreation Complex and Madison High School, both of which are .5 miles from the location," the petition says. "Given that there is a perfectly adequate helipad facility at Morristown Municipal Airport, which is approximately 1 mile away, this request is unwarranted and should be rejected."

Michael Fischer was among several residents who called the helipad plan "ridiculous" in comments accompanying their signatures.

"It is ridiculous to add a helipad close to neighborhoods when one already exists a mile away," he wrote. "There is no medical emergency need either since Morristown Hospital is also less than 2 miles away. A completely ridiculous proposal... honestly!"

Others said it would disturb a peaceful neighborhood.

"The Morristown Airport is already a serious noise issue in our neighborhood and the Jets helipad would be even worse, and closer," Sharon Okamoto wrote in a comment. "It would be a terrible intrusion on the peacefulness of an entire neighborhood, for the convenience of a few."