to 7 pm weekdays and 11 am to 7 pm on weekends, but the heliport is available 24/7 with fuel when needed, the only one in the New York City metropolitan area offering this convenience. The heliport is owned by the Hudson


River Park Trust, a local–state part- nership formed in 1998 via the Hudson River Park Act to administer the Hudson River Park and related commercial development. Businesses at the 1.6-acre site pay the trust annual fees. That ownership structure has


enabled a political climate that puts KJRA under almost perennial attack from a small group of local activists and area residents. Critics maintain that the operation of a commercial heliport within the confines of a public park creates a conflict, even though all approaches and departures must be conducted over the Hudson River and not over the park’s green space. Antihelicopter advocates have been highly successful in getting industry- limiting legislation introduced and nearly passed into law. “It’s an ongoing, contentious matter


for certain groups—small pockets of residents, particularly in New York City, who have a problem with our operations as it relates to their quality of life. We recognize that, and we do not diminish that,” says Rousseau. “We embrace that conversation because we want to be good neighbors. We fly where we live.” Rousseau characterizes most of


these anti-industry efforts as “ill- informed ideas and misconceptions about the realities of how we operate,” adding that most flights conducted out of KJRA are dictated by the FAA’s rules for local airspace that control “what


Nestled against the western shoreline of


the Hudson River in Midtown Manhattan, the heliport is ideally situated to accommodate business and personal charter flights. (VAI/Dan Sweet)


SEP 2024 POWER UP 31


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