The port will acquire the houses, demolish them, then bury the neighborhood under tons of fill for the third runway. Madrona Elementary School on Sea-Tac's southeast side, underscores the nature of the relationship between the airport and its neighbors. Madrona has 570 kids in its sprawling main building and 11 portables. The south end of Sea-Tac's runway is close enough that a steady stream of jets pass over the school soccer field. Madrona is part of the Highline School District, which has been at loggerheads for years with the Port of Seattle over noise-proofing the schools.
Negotiations have yet to produce an agreement.
So Madrona doesn't have sound insulation. Nor is it air conditioned. A mild day finds classrooms with open windows and the thunder of jet engines drowning out the complexities of multiplication and cursive writing. It's an old practice in the district, says Madrona Principal Bert Campbell, to teach, stop as a plane passes, then resume teaching. Familiarity hasn't bred affection.