O'HARE — Northwest Side residents fed up with the constant roar of jets over their homes will get more chances to tell federal officials to put a sock in it.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration would hold four public meetings this summer, rather than two as originally planned by the federal agency, to discuss the opening of a new east-west runway set for this fall.
"The residents who live near O'Hare deserve every opportunity to share their thoughts and views about O'Hare with federal officials, and I'm glad the FAA has agreed to hold more public meetings," Emanuel said in a news release.
FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said Emanuel expressed concerns about the agency's plan to hold two 12-hour meetings, and the agency agreed to a "new plan of four public meetings."
"The FAA has always been committed to a full and open process that provides those who work and live near the airport with an opportunity to be heard," Huerta said.
Heather Cherone discusses neighbors' efforts to reduce jet noise:
The dates and locations of the meetings have not been set, city officials said.
FAA officials are conducting an initial assessment of whether more environmental studies are needed to determine the impact of the new east-west runway on noise and air pollution. The runway is scheduled to open Oct. 15.
The runway, on the south side of the airport, is being built from the order laid out in a decade-old environmental study conducted before the O'Hare Modernization Plan was approved by city, state and federal officials.
The opening of that runway could send even more air traffic over Edison Park, Norwood Park, Jefferson Park, North Park and Sauganash, where residents heard little to no traffic before an east-west runway opened in 2013, according to members of the Fair Allocation in Runways Coalition.
One of O'Hare's remaining diagonal runways is set to be taken out of service in Aug. 20 as the new east-west runway prepares for this fall's opening.
Two bills pending in the Illinois Senate would allow O'Hare to operate 10 runways instead of eight, and require the diagonal runway to be maintained in an effort to spread the racket around the city and suburbs.
City officials contend the O'Hare Modernization Plan — designed to make airport operations safer and more efficient — is crucial to ensuring Chicago's growth by keeping the airport among the busiest in the world, encouraging both business travelers and tourists to visit Chicago.
The east-west runways allow planes to take off and land without crossing paths with other jets while on the ground, which aviation officials said are designed to reduce delays and increase safety.
In January, 39,500 complaints were filed with city officials — an all-time record and a 525 percent increase from the number of jet noise complaints filed in January 2014, according to data released by the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission.
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