Burien, Des Moines Step Back From StART Day Over Airport Impact Concerns

Due to frustrations with the Port of Seattle, leaders from Burien have announced they will not attend StART Day in Olympia next week, an advocacy event linked to the SEA Stakeholder Advisory Round Table (StART), a Port of Seattle–convened group intended to align policy priorities among airport-impacted cities and stakeholders.

Community representatives from Des Moines have also opted not to participate, reflecting broader frustration shared by residents and officials in Burien, SeaTac, Des Moines, and Normandy Park over what they describe as a lack of meaningful progress on aircraft noise, air quality, and accountability from the Port of Seattle.

At the center of the dispute are immediate impacts from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, including aircraft noise, ultrafine particle pollution, and economic limitations beneath flight paths. Burien officials say long-term or aspirational policy goals do not address residents’ current suffering.

The City of Burien has formally endorsed Senate Bill 5652, legislation sponsored by Sen. Tina Orwall, which would establish state-oversight for air quality monitoring and noise mitigation repairs. However, officials say the Port of Seattle has recently signaled it will not support the legislation, a shift that has further strained relations between the Port and surrounding communities.

Below is the full statement delivered by Brian Davis, Vice Chair of the Burien Airport Committee.

Highline Forum – StART Day

01.28.26

Hello. I’m Brian Davis, Vice Chair of the Burien Airport Committee.

I’d like to make everyone aware that Burien will not participate next week in StART Day in Olympia. Likewise, the community representatives from Des Moines have decided not to attend, but I’ll focus here on why Burien has made its decision.

We are unable to sign on to most of the items on StART’s list of shared policy priorities. We have no interest in promoting agenda items that will be decades in the making, such as the development of Sustainable Aviation Fuel or the location of a second major commercial airport for this region.

Our people are suffering now—from the cumulative effects of the noise of 12-hundred takeoffs and landings a day. From the effects of ultrafine particles shed by those aircraft, but which federal regulations ignore. From the economic damage done beneath the flight path, where development is difficult at best and—for certain enterprises like in-home daycare—impossible.

The StART agenda’s stated goals regarding air quality are so vague that they are of no practical value. And we have significant issues with the position outlined on noise insulation repair and replacement.

The City of Burien has endorsed SB 5652, which would establish a comprehensive system for air quality monitoring and assessment, as well as concrete guidelines with state oversight of repair and replacement of so-called “Port packages” for noise mitigation.

After initially suggesting that it might be willing to help develop compromise legislation, the Port of Seattle is now signaling that it will not support SB 5652 in any form. We find this troublesome, as we do the Port’s unclear stance on SB 6240, which would capture a portion of future increases in the aviation fuel tax to help fund the programs set out in the other bill.

There is, to sum up, a lack of true collaboration on the issues most important to our city and its people. Sending our delegates to StART Day in Olympia would contribute to a false narrative about the state of relations between Burien and the Port—which we do hope we can change in a meaningful way. And the sooner, the better.

Thank you.