Expert: Bringing F-35 jet to Luke AFB will drop home values
abc15.com
04/02/2010
EL MIRAGE, AZ — Officials say home prices in one west Valley city could drop if the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is brought to Luke Air Force Base.
“It’s a substantial hit to homeowners in the West Valley,” said Stacy Peason with the City of El Mirage.
Officials from El Mirage spoke out Friday about the F-35.
“The F-35 is expected, by the military’s own estimates, to be somewhere between twice and four times as loud,” Pearson said.
The city wanted to know how this extra noise would affect residents so they asked an ASU professor to study the problem.
According to the study the houses will drop in value somewhere between 9 and 17 percent, Pearson said.
At most that’s an almost $26,000 drop for a $150,000 house.
Luke Air Force Base is one of three bases in contention for the new fighter.
Right now it’s being evaluated by an environmental impact survey, or EIS, to determine effects such as noise.
“Once we find out that information and that data on noise and everything else that in encompasses then we’ll have good information to have meaningful conversations,” said F-35 supporter Steve Yamamori.
Yamamori with Fighter Country Partnership says there’s no evidence yet that the F-35 will have any impact on the West Valley.
“It’s a little too early to be coming up with conclusions on what that might mean,” Yamamori said.
He thinks people should wait until the EIS comes out this summer, and then discuss any possible problems and solutions before the final decision is made in the spring of 2011.
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