WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Palm Beach residents voiced concerns about ongoing flight path disruptions during a community meeting Wednesday night, despite recent adjustments to Trump-related flight restrictions.
City, county and congressional leaders met with about 30 Flamingo Park residents to address noise complaints and property damage caused by aircraft flying overhead since new security measures took effect.
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Nick Sacco, a 13-year Flamingo Park resident, said the flight path changes have dramatically altered his quiet neighborhood.
"We're woken up at six or seven o'clock every morning because of the change in the flight path. And I just finished painting the back of my house, and now it's covered with black soot," Sacco said.
The meeting included City Commission President Christina Lambert, County Commissioner Gregg Weiss and Congresswoman Lois Frankel, who said she met with the Secret Service to understand the reasoning behind the flight changes.
"They're protecting the property. Let's put it that way," Frankel said, noting she cannot disclose specific security details.
Updated flight restrictions implemented on January 24 have reduced noise impact for some residents but created new problems for others. The airport has received more than 500 noise complaints with the new flight paths — 10 times more than last year.
Weiss, who lives in one of the affected neighborhoods, said officials are exploring all options to address the issue while maintaining security.
"We'll continue to do that, but try and push forward and see what additional changes and modifications would be reasonably made to, of course, keep the president secure, which we all definitely want to do, but also, you know, provide relief to the residents," Weiss said.
Sacco suggested the flight path should only change when Trump is present at his property.
"If they want to change the flight path when he's there, that's fine. When he's not there, I don't see the need for changing the flight path," Sacco said.
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