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May 10, 2007
Airport noise appears to be a non-issue
We've receied a few e-mails from SSV members voicing concerns about the noise from the airport at the FMC site, and that was one of SSV's initial concerns as well. However, the indications are that the noise from jet takeoffs and landings lessen considerably for locations that aren't in the flight path.
Noise from airports is measured using a formula to create "Community Noise Equivalent Levels." CNELs are a 24-hour average noise level with noise occurring during evening hours (7:00-10:00 pm) weighted by a factor of three and nighttime hours weighted by a factor of 10 prior to averaging.
The federally designated threshold for incompatible residential land uses is 65 dB CNEL and Mineta San Jose International Airport has an ongoing noise monitoring program to determine where noise generated by planes exceeds this level. The most recent noise monitoring map on the airport's web site (PDF file, 2.9M) shows that the FMC site is just outside of the 65 CNEL contour, which seems to mean that you could legally build housing there. It's also important to note that, thanks to the way that CNELs are calculated, the airport has an incentive to minimize noise after 7:00 pm—which, coincidentally, is the starting time for most MLS matches.
Even with the ambient noise from I-880 and Coleman Avenue, it sounds to us like the loudest thing in the stadium will still be the Casbah. So let's cross "airport noise" off the list of potential problems with the site. It doesn't appear to be an issue.
Posted by Jay at May 10, 2007 12:32 PM
Comments
It's good to know that airport sound won't be a major issue, but will the collected pollution from the nearby airport be a concern?
Posted by: Goodsport at May 11, 2007 06:22 AM