The calls flooded in on March 1: A small yellow plane had gone down in the Laurel Oak neighborhood. Emergency crews and state aviation officials rushed to the scene.
John "Buddy" Toole, who had just landed his vintage plane, wondered what all the commotion was about.
"There were fire trucks and FDOT at my property asking me what happened," he recalled. "I told them I was just taking my plane out, like I'd been doing since November. Nobody ever told me that I couldn't do that."
Toole had been flying his plane several times a week, using an equestrian racetrack on his 15-acre property at 11250 SW 45th St. for takeoffs and landings. He said he's careful to abide by federal aviation guidelines, staying below 12,000 feet and above 500 feet, and soared mostly over park space before heading west to cruise the Everglades.
But the March "crash" touched off a string of events that culminated Wednesday night with the Davie Town Council unanimously passing an law prohibiting private airports.
Toole, 60, who describes himself as a horseman who dabbles in real estate and lawn maintenance, said Thursday he's now considering moving to a sparsely populated community north of Lake Okeechobee.
"I like to have fun," he said, "and they have rules against any fun here."
Residents say Toole has buzzed their rooftops on many occasions, flying so low they could see him in the cockpit. His plane is a curiousity: A Piper J-5, it was built in 1940 and weighs about 700 pounds, less than the weight of a small car. It cruises at 80 miles an hour, and can land on a runway 360 feet long; his horse track is over 1,100 feet.
"He was using our streets as an approach, it was dangerously close to our rooftops and one little mistake, that's a recipe for disaster," said Claudette Bonville, vice president of Laurel Oaks East Homeowners Association.
Stephanie Scheinman, who lives near Toole, spoke out at Wednesday's meeting.
"I'm not here to put down the aviation community, I'm here to protect what Davie stands for," she said. "The general noise level is disruptive to horses, what if one got spooked and bucked a rider?''
Thomas Hill, a pilot, supported Toole at the meeting, to a chorus of boos.
"I never remember a plane hitting anyone since I've lived here," he said. "It's the safest way of transportation, that's a fact. This seems like a manufactured crisis."
After the March incident, the Town Council temporarily prohibited any future private flights while it prepared a permanent law.
Toole said he had been considering selling his property for $7 million to a wealthy man he described as a "Harrison Ford" type who also owns a plane and wanted to build an air park on the land for "fly ins" by other pilots. Toole told the council that if the law banning airports passed, he would lose out on a multimillion-dollar sale.
About a hundred residents showed up at Wednesday's meeting, many clutching prepared speeches. But Mayor Judy Paul, who received at least 75 emails from anti-airport residents, assured the crowd the town would not allow private runways.
"We're here to protect our residents," she said.
Source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com
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