Laserfiche WebLink
3.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CHECKLIST <br />City of San Leandro 1388 Bancroft Avenue Project <br />November 2018 Initial Study/Mitigated Negative Declaration <br />3.0-59 <br />Policy EH-7.9 Vibration Impacts. Limit the potential for vibration impacts from construction and ongoing operations to disturb sensitive uses such as <br />housing and schools. <br />CHECKLIST DISCUSSION <br />a, c) Less Than Significant Impact. <br />Impacts on Future Project Residents <br />The effect of existing noise on future project residents is considered an effect of the <br />environment on the project; as such, it is not a CEQA consideration. However, it is a <br />planning consideration for the City in determining project design and permit approvals. As indicated by the noise measurements and traffic noise contour from the General Plan EIR, <br />discussed above, exterior residential spaces on the project site (e.g., apartment balconies) <br />that face Estudillo Avenue and Bancroft Avenue may be exposed to noise levels up to <br />65.6 dBA CNEL. This noise level would be at the upper end of the normally acceptable range for multi-family housing and would exceed the 60 dBA Ldn residential exterior noise <br />standard defined in General Plan Policy EH-7.3. <br />Long-Term Operational Traffic Noise <br />As described in subsection 3.16, Transportation/Traffic, the project would generate fewer trips than the existing medical office buildings on the project site. Therefore, the project <br />would not increase traffic noise above existing levels in the project site vicinity. <br />Long-Term Operational Stationary Noise <br />Once operational, the project would generate noise from various on-site stationary sources, including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment, parking <br />lot activities, and solid waste collection and recycling operations. The nearest off-site <br />sensitive receptors in the project vicinity are the single-family homes adjacent to the project site to the east, and Bancroft Middle School across Estudillo Avenue to the north. <br />HVAC equipment is often mounted on rooftops, located on the ground, or placed within <br />mechanical rooms. The noise sources could take the form of fans, pumps, air compressors, <br />chillers, or cooling towers. The precise details of HVAC equipment, including future location, sizing, and any sound enclosures, are unknown at the time of this analysis. Therefore, for purposes of this analysis, a conservative maximum noise level (Lmax) of 80 dB <br />at 3 feet was assumed to represent HVAC-related noise with a location on the building <br />roof. Noise produced near the ground propagates outward in a hemispherical pattern and diminishes (attenuates) at a rate of approximately 6 dB for every doubling of distance. The closest off-site residences, approximately 110 feet from a rooftop HVAC system <br />location, would be exposed to a noise level of 49 dBA Lmax generated by HVAC <br />equipment. This noise level would not exceed the City’s standard acceptable noise level of 60 dB Ldn for residential exterior spaces. <br />The primary parking for the project would be located on the east side of the project site, <br />in the same approximate location as the parking area for the existing businesses on the <br />project site. Because the project is expected to generate fewer daily trips than the existing uses on the project site, parking lot noise would not be expected to increase over existing <br />conditions.