Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) Executive Director Deborah Flint, City of Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, Jr., and Inglewood City Manager Artie Fields recently toured the 2,000th Inglewood home to complete sound insulation work in 2015.
More than 7,057 Inglewood residential units have completed sound proofing, of which more than 2,000 will be sound insulated this year alone. Inglewood’s program includes nearly 9,600 eligible homes/dwelling units, based on the historical program boundary, including end-of-block properties.
“Congratulations to LAWA and the City of Inglewood on the remarkable success of the sound insulation program,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “This milestone achievement demonstrates LAX’s ongoing commitment to being a good neighbor and improving the quality of life for its surrounding communities and the residents who live there.”
“LAWA is committed to being an environmentally responsible neighbor by mitigating and managing aircraft noise due to operations at Los Angeles International Airport,” said LAWA Executive Director Flint. “LAWA is helping enhance the quality of life for eligible homeowners by providing sound- insulation improvements that reduce interior noise levels in eligible homes to 45 decibels CNEL (Community Noise Equivalent Level) and achieve at least a five-decibel reduction inside the home.”
She added, “The pace of Inglewood’s residential soundproofing program this year makes it one of the most successful among all U.S. airports.”
“I want residents to know that working together, the City of Inglewood and LAWA have reached an impressive milestone by providing sound insulation for more than 2,000 families this year,” said Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts, Jr.
“With the infusion of $73 million since late 2014, $62 million from LAWA alone, we have been able to help residents who never thought their homes would receive sound insulation.”
The City of Inglewood’s Residential Sound Insulation Program began in 1992 under a pilot program funded by LAWA and the Federal Aviation Administration that resulted in 38 homes being retrofitted with aircraft noise-mitigation improvements.
To date, LAWA has awarded $130 million and the FAA $156 million to Inglewood for its sound- insulation program. The project cost covers all acoustical, architectural, engineering, construction and administrative activities. Construction contractors typically install double-paned windows, solid-core doors and dampers, attic baffles, heating/ventilation/air-conditioning systems, insulation, and other elements to achieve the targeted interior noise level reduction
Since the 1990s, LAWA’s sound-insulation grant program currently oversees residential and school sound-insulation activities. LAWA has provided funding and monitors four voluntary residential sound-insulation programs in neighborhoods surrounding Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) including the cities of Inglewood, El Segundo, Los Angeles (Council Districts 8 and 11); and the County of Los Angeles (unincorporated areas of Athens, Del Aire and Lennox).
Altogether, there are almost 30,000 homes/dwelling units eligible for sound insulation in the LAX area, constituting the largest airport sound-insulation program in the country. More than 20,000 homes/dwelling units have been sound insulated. To date, LAWA has spent nearly $600 million on sound insulating eligible homes/dwelling units in all four communities surrounding LAX.
