Within the last year, some Reston residents have reported concerns about increased airplane noise in areas where it previously wasn’t a nuisance.

Although changes in flight patterns have resulted in airplanes flying at lower altitudes over neighborhoods across the country, the Federal Aviation Administration says that there have been no such changes in Reston and Herndon that could explain the spike in complaints.

In some cases, residents say planes are flying so low “you can see their tail logo.”

Nanci Jewell, who lives on Quorn Lane in Reston, says that several neighbors have noticed the issue in recent months.

“We’ve always been right under a flight path but it’s never been like this,” Jewell said. “There are whole segments of the day and night when the noise is unbearable.”

In an unscientific poll by Reston Now on Feb. 6, nearly 57 percent of respondents said they noticed an increase in airplane noise. Roughly 33 percent of respondents said they noticed no change and at all. The remainder of the 1,412 total respondents said they were either unsure or didn’t know.

Kevin Wiley, a South Lakes resident for 15 years, says there’s no question of a difference in noise levels.

“In particular, ever so often we get a very loud, large aircraft flying low over our house. It is unmistakable.”

Similar concerns were reported by residents near Glencourse Lane, Armstrong Elementary School, South Lakes Village Center, and North Point Village Center.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority also told Reston Now they haven’t noticed an uptick in complaints from residents affected by more noise.

“We’re not aware of any modifications to the normal flight paths or typical altitude assignment for air traffic operating at and around Dulles International,” an MWAA spokesperson said.

Communities across the country have sounded off against NextGen, a $40 billion nationwide program designed to modernize air traffic control.

FAA officials say that the system will save $160 billion through 2030 in fuel, maintenance and other costs.

Residents concerned about aircraft noise can file a complaint online.

Photo via Unsplash

A section giving guidance on how to control the impact of traffic-related noise in Reston’s Transit Station Areas was accidentally deleted from Reston’s Comprehensive Plan. At a meeting tomorrow, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will consider a plan to reinstate the language.

The county’s Planning Commission unanimously approved adding the language back in November. The update is merely editorial, as the language previously passed through the public hearing process and was adopted by the board.

“We couldn’t just say ‘oops’ and put it back… into the plan without going through the whole process again,” said Planning Commissioner Frank de la Fe.

Generally, the plan discourages new residential development in areas with projected highway noise exposure above 75 decibels.

But in Reston Station Areas near highways and Metrorail, new residential development could be appropriate if noise impacts go beyond 75 decibels, so long as specific noise mitigation methods are in effect.

The language requires a noise study during the development review process, as well as after the development is completed in order to evaluate the effectiveness of noise mitigation procedures. If noise impacts are above 75 DBA, disclosure statements detailing potential noise impacts are necessary.

Graphic via handout

If your dog barks late at night you and your neighbors complain, you could get a ticket under proposed new Fairfax County noise ordinance changes.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors will vote on Tuesday to authorize a public hearing on changes to the noise ordinance that will aim to guarantee residents a little peace and quiet at night.

The public hearing will be held May 12 at 4 p.m. at the Fairfax County Government Center. If approved, the changes will go into effect the next day.

Here are some of the changes county staff seeks to make:

Activities on School and Recreational Grounds — Advertise a decibel range of 60 to 72 dBA for limiting the maximum noise level for cumulative noise, when loudspeakers are used.

“People Noise” — Begin prohibition on noise that can be heard in residential districts (read: party noise) at 11:00 p.m. on weekends and the day before a holiday.

Dog Parks — Begin dog park hours at 8:00 a.m. on weekends and holidays. This may be good news to residents of Longwood Grove in Reston, who in 2014 filed an injunction against the dog park at Baron Cameron Park, saying the excessive noise begins at 5:30 a.m.

Animal Noise — Any owner or person in control of any animal that allows or otherwise permits any such animal to  bark, howl, bay, meow, squawk, quack, crow or make such other sound between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. that is plainly audible in any other residence with doors and windows closed could be in violation. There are exceptions and time rules. Read more details on the updated propoal.

Operation of Power Lawn Equipment — Permit the use of power lawn equipment, except leaf blowers, beginning at 5:30 a.m. for golf course maintenance when located more than 50 yards from a residence.

Trash Collection — No changes to current proposal.

Maximum Sound Levels — No changes to current proposal.

See all changes, exceptions and conditions in this chart from the county.

The county is seeking to use a proposed new Noise Ordinance to replace the current Noise Ordinance and the provisions that were put in place in 2013.

In late 2013, the supervisors adopted the Excessive Sound Generation in Residential Districts provisions that allowed police to ticket a resident with misdemeanor charges if neighbors complain about noise.

In early 2014, county staff presented the first draft of a new Noise Ordinance (Chapter 108.1 of the County Code) to a Board of Supervisors’ committee.

The county held a series of public hearings in 2014, and in February 2015 developed an updated draft noise ordinance amendment and summary chart and requested guidance on several issues.

Baron Cameron Dog Park/file photo

Feel free to plan that big summer party: the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday scrapped plans for proposed new zoning rules on group assembly in private homes.

Earlier this year, the supervisors sought feedback from the public on new language in the zoning ordinance. The zoning ordinance would have banned large gatherings — more than 49 people — in private residences more than three times in a 40-day period.

The board said on Tuesday there was not enough public support to move forward with the proposal. The county held three public hearings on the subject and read 200 submitted comments. As a result, the proposal was removed from the 2014 Zoning Ordinance Work Program that the board approved at its Tuesday meeting.

The supervisors began considering the proposal in February, saying that “over the last several years, there have been complaints from residents regarding frequent and large gatherings at neighborhood homes. These gatherings can create parking, noise, and other concerns for the neighborhood.”

More from the county:

Although occasional, large gatherings – such as private parties, house concerts, religious meetings and social clubs – are expected and permissible activities at a home, gatherings that occur on a regular basis involving numerous people can detract from the residential nature of a neighborhood because most residential structures and neighborhoods are not designed to accommodate such events.

Accordingly, it is recommended that language be added to the Zoning Ordinance to define what is a permissible “group assembly,” and when associated with a residence, when such a group assembly is an appropriate “accessory use.” Currently, the Zoning Ordinance does not identify guidelines for the frequency or scale at which group assembly is considered to be a permitted accessory use to a dwelling.

Without such specificity, managing and addressing impacts of these large, frequent gatherings becomes problematic, and the County is limited in its ability to respond to neighborhood concerns.

The proposal was criticized by many local residents, including this Reston Now reader:

“What a ridiculous proposal. I can have groups of 49 but that 50th person is “over the top? Every 41 days is OK but 40 is too much? Do children count? How are the police going to enforce, will the residents need to hand out numbered tickets to all their party guests or maintain a guest list so that when the cops come knocking we can show them we are in compliance?”

“Will this be 49 total for the day or at any one time? Don’t our local representatives have something better to do (like implement a meals tax or raise my property taxes)?”