Here’s the latest on the Charlotte airport’s plan to build a new runway

Charlotte Douglas International Airport took another step toward building a fourth parallel runway Friday, with the release of a draft environmental assessment that delved into the noise impact of the planned change.

The proposed runway, a $672 million project, has been in the works for more than five years, since the city of Charlotte completed an Airport Capacity Enhancement Plan in 2016.

The plans also include expanding concourses B and C. That would involve adding 180,000 square feet of space to Concourse B, allowing it to accommodate an additional 22 gates.

And the plan proposes expanding Concourse C by 180,000 square feet, allowing it to accommodate another 13 gates.

Construction on the runway could be completed by 2027 and terminal construction could be completed by 2028, according to the draft document.

In 2018, the airport had projected a 12,000-foot runway could be completed by 2023. But the length of the proposed runway has been reduced to 10,000 feet.

It would be built to the west of the CLT terminal, running through the Charlotte Douglas Airport Overlook, which would be relocated, according to the airport.

The runway is meant to deal with two problems the airport anticipates as growth in the area increases: insufficient terminal gate capacity and ramp congestion, and insufficient runway capacity.

In a December presentation, the airport said it expects to need 140 gates by 2028 — 20 more gates than it has now. And by 2033, airport officials expect to need 150 gates.

Environmental impact

Under the National Environmental Policy Act, the airport is also required to consider alternatives to the proposed 10,000-foot runway, which include taking no action, shifting the proposed runway 100 feet to the east or building a new 8,900-foot-runway.

In the environmental assessment, the airport considered a number of potential environmental impacts of the construction, including: air quality, biological resources, climate, hazardous materials and pollution prevention, land use and noise.

The draft shows the proposed runway could reduce airport noise for a number of single-family homes and one day care. But some nearby duplex or triplex residential units could hear more noise.

Without any runway construction, the airport shows one school, East Voyager Academy of Charlotte; three churches, Harvest Church, Montagnard Alliance Church and Every Nation Church; and one day care facility, Beginning Years Day Care, Inc.; will be located in what the FAA considers “significant” airport noise levels by 2028.

The proposed runway could reduce noise at the day care, as well as reducing noise at 10 single-family residential units. But airport noise could increase at six duplex or triplex residential units and at two mobile home units, according to the airport assessment.

Still, the airport said the proposed runway would not result in “significant noise increases.”

The last runway built at the airport, a 9,000-foot runway, was completed in 2010, according to CLT.

Public forums planned

The draft environmental assessment is just one step on the way to the needed approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Before that decision, the airport will host several public forums and a public review. Anyone can comment on the assessment by emailing CLTCapacityEA@landrum-brown.com or sending comments to Sarah Potter, Associate Vice President, Landrum & Brown at 4445 Lake Forest Drive Suite 700, Cincinnati, OH 45255.

Comments are due no later than 5 p.m. on June 1. More information on submitting comments is available at the project website.

The airport will hold two online public workshops and hearings in May to discuss the draft environmental assessment. Anyone can register to attend those meetings online.

The first public workshop is at 1 p.m. on May 17, followed by a 2 p.m. public hearing. The second workshop will be held at 6 p.m. on May 18, followed by a 7 p.m. public hearing.

Editor’s note: This story was updated to clarify that the proposed runway would be constructed to the west of the Charlotte Douglas International Airport terminal.