Kendall Residents Protest Airplane Noise as Miami Executive Airport Expansions Continue

For years, residents in the western part of Kendall have endured the relentless drone of aircraft flying over their homes, and last Thursday, they decided it was time to make their voices heard.

According to the blog Political Cortadito, the Kendall Federation of Homeowners Associations (KFHA) and the Miami-Dade Aviation Department held a community meeting at the Kendall Village Civic Pavilion to address the growing complaints about noise from the Miami Executive Airport operations.

Michael Rosenberg, the president of KFHA, disclosed that complaints have risen compared to previous years, with the issue dating back to at least 2012. Back then, residents near SW 120th Street and 137th Avenue began questioning the airport's impact on their neighborhoods.

The practice that most frustrates the residents is the so-called "touch-and-go": training pilots land, take off, and circle back repeatedly over densely populated residential areas, over and over, without pause.

"This airport noise has been going on for years," Rosenberg stated. "I would like to see if we can create a committee with the community and the airport to hold regular meetings and discuss how the issue is being addressed."

The neighborhood leader was straightforward in rallying his neighbors: "We may not have this opportunity for long. Simply put: if you hear the planes, you better show up, or you might be listening to that noise for the rest of your life."

Continued Airport Expansions Add to Concerns

What makes the protest more urgent is that the county is not halting the airport's growth—in fact, quite the opposite. Just a week before the community meeting, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava led the groundbreaking of the Ocean Aviation campus, a $67 million project supported by Kennedy Lewis Investment Management. This initiative will transform 40 undeveloped acres into up to 400,000 square feet of hangars, a premium terminal, and a fuel depot.

This is not the only approved expansion. In July, commissioners approved a 25-year lease with MQ TMB Holdings for another aviation project with a minimum investment of seven million dollars. In September, the commission unanimously approved the expansion of KASE LLC, increasing its leased area from about ten to nearly 15 acres, including two new hangars and an additional terminal.

Residents Demand More Effective Noise Control

Kendall residents argue that the county has not calculated how many additional flights these three expansions combined will generate or what impact they will have on surrounding neighborhoods.

For them, current noise control measures are inadequate. The airport is officially designated as noise-sensitive and has published noise reduction procedures, but consultants hired by the county advised against installing permanent monitors in neighborhoods, claiming they wouldn't provide reliably accurate information. Acoustic contour maps were updated in 2023, although the averages they reflect do not capture the real impact of repetitive flyovers.

District 11 Commissioner Rob Gonzalez wrote to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in August, requesting a review of flight patterns, adjustments to early morning and late-night schedules, distribution of routes among more neighborhoods, and reduced traffic during religious worship hours.

In his letter, he noted that "a significant volume of air traffic is directed directly over densely populated residential properties, instead of using available approach and departure routes that would minimize exposure over homes."

The recent expansions at Miami's airport have sparked a broader debate about balancing economic development with quality of life in South Florida.

Residents who wish to file a formal noise complaint can call the Miami-Dade Aviation Department's Aviation Noise Mitigation Office at 305-876-7526.