Printer Friendly Version - Patrick Rowland Finds Passion in Fighting Tweed Expansion with 10,000 Hawks

Living in the neighborhood near the south end of Tweed’s runway, Patrick Rowland has become involved in 10,000 Hawks, a group working to halt the expansion of the airport. Photo courtesy of Patrick Rowland

There have been no shortage of challenges since Patrick Rowland and his wife, Lisa, decided to realize their dream of owning a home on the water. The couple bought a beach cottage in East Haven in 2012, but just as they were getting settled, it was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy. The couple began to rebuild, but after rags used for staining left by a work crew spontaneously combusted, house No. 2 burnt to the ground.

“We cut it apart and rebuilt it a second time and moved in during the summer of 2015,” says Patrick. “When we built, we were the third-best green home in Connecticut, but we were two blocks too far from the public bus line to be certified as a Platinum green home.”

Despite lacking the Platinum rating, Patrick planned on this being the couple’s forever home. With the recent discussion of the expansion of Tweed-New Haven Airport and the newly added Avelo flights, Patrick is reconsidering that plan, though not without a fight as he recently joined 10,000 Hawks, a group with a mission to stop the expansion.

“We bought our home knowing there was an airport there, but we never expected them to expand as years ago someone had promised they wouldn’t make it bigger,” says Patrick, whose home is 3,850 feet from the south end of the runway. “The city is now saying making the runway longer is in the best interest of the City of New Haven, which means Yale. I thought, ‘Why is nobody asking questions?’ That’s what got me riled enough to start digging and paying attention.”

As a certified public accountant, the financial aspect of the airport expansion is particularly interesting to Patrick. Patrick also has a master’s in tax and was working on his PhD in public finance at The New School. With 10,000 Hawks, he has attended several meetings held about the airport expansion.

“I’ve been to the meetings, I’m trying to be active, I’ve talked to [State Representative] Joe Zullo, and I’ve questioned whether the economic analysis makes sense for the community and no answers have been forthcoming,” says Patrick. “They’re not serving us, they’re serving themselves with an investment by a large global conglomerate with a 43-year lease, which is inconceivable on the grand scheme of things when you compare to what makes sense.”

In addition to the financial concerns, Patrick has learned of the other ways that the airport expansion can affect residents, wildlife, and the environment. With the new flights to Florida having recently started, Patrick says he has noticed the decibel levels are already being recorded over the current regulations and that planes are taking off before the 7 a.m. mark.

Patrick also notes that the expansion will affect those with respiratory issues, local waters, home values, traffic, and the flight paths of butterflies and birds, which is how the group got its name. Living on the water, Patrick often sits on his porch to watch the wildlife, from the migration of butterflies in the fall to the bald eagle that lives in the neighborhood to osprey fishing for snapper blues.

“I’m a numbers guy, but I’m every bit as worried about the girl who has asthma, the environment, and the people who are crabbing in Morse Creek as they’re using RoundUp to clear the plants on the runway and it flows off into the creek,” says Patrick. “No one is talking about how they’re building in a flood zone. I live in a flood zone and understand the ravages of a storm. By building in a flood zone without following regulations, it puts our national flood insurance discount at risk.”

This is not the only time that Patrick has gotten involved in the community. In the mid-1990s, Patrick served as the assistant to cycling coordinator for the World Special Olympic Games.

In 1996, he created Sisyphus Sports, Inc., a 501c3 non-profit that hosted the USA national junior road cycling championships in New Haven and Haddam. With the events, the group hosted nearly 500 families from across the country for a week of junior racing.

Sisyphus Sports, Inc., gained sponsorship from Bell Atlantic Mobile, which then became Verizon Wireless, with the non-profit supporting breast cancer and then domestic violence.

“For nearly a decade, we were the No. 1 USA-based team and we donated all team winnings to charity,” says Patrick, who also enjoys playing golf.

While Patrick has been in the area, particularly near the airport, for nearly 40 years, he grew up in Missouri. He came to the area after meeting his wife in culinary school in New York before getting married in 1984. Lisa grew up in North Branford and the couple decided to move to Connecticut, living in Fair Haven before moving to the Leete House in Guilford for seven years. While in Guilford, Patrick was the chairman of the Board of Assessment Appeals.

In 1993, the couple purchased the Kellogg House on Townsend Avenue near Tweed-New Haven Airport. The home was close to Lisa’s family as she grew up in Morgan Point. Though they loved their home, they were always looking for a home on the beach, purchasing their home in 2012.

Now Patrick is focusing his efforts with 10,000 Hawks with a mission of stopping the airport expansion and the expansion of the runway. He has enjoyed connecting with like-minded residents and seeing the passion people have for a cause.

“It’s refreshing to see people who, in the face of adversity and enormous challenge, stand in front of Yale University and say, ‘Your view of the world is not good for everyone.’ It’s not just me at the end of the runway yelling, ‘Not over my house’,” says Patrick. “It’s the larger, broader community fighting against worse air, worse traffic, pollution in the marsh, and harm to birds and wildlife.

“It’s not worth it if the value of houses and property goes down, one kid gets sick, there’s more traffic,” adds Patrick. “I’m not saying the airport shouldn’t be there, but 737s are landing there now so it doesn’t have to have another 1,000 feet. With that, there will be even bigger planes and more frequent flights so I will continue to work on that and stand up for what I think is right because no one else is.”