Backers of large-hangar proposal shouldn't have caught airport neighbors by surprise

The thought of owning a home near a "jet park" sounds about as appealing as living on swampland in Florida.

That's why it's understandable that residents in northeast Carson are leery of the proposed project to build a large hangar, even if the reality of the proposal turns out to be far less intrusive than the name suggests. Their concerns are about noise, safety and property values.

It's fortunate they'll have plenty of opportunities to get their questions answered, but at the same time, it's disappointing that many residents who would be affected had to learn about the proposal from a newspaper article rather than from the people behind the development.

In this case, residents have already been sensitized by pilots flying low, and noisily, over their homes. There have even been two crashes since 2001, one that seriously injured a man working in his yard.

To its credit, the airport eventually assured residents they would take measures to cut down on irresponsible behavior from pilots. And a renovation that will realign the main runway will also help alleviate the problem.

But residents are still waiting to hear what the proposed 32,000-square-foot hangar will mean for them. How much more air traffic and noise will it bring? The plan still awaits approval from the airport's advisory panel and reviews from city planners, so the answers should not be long in coming.

And it won't be too soon for nearby neighborhoods, where residents are wondering what's the next proposal that's going to drop from the sky.