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3.10.9 Potential Effect: The location and height of the Project buildings could potentially limit the number of aimraft that air traffic controllers would be willing to handle under SVFR conditions within Class D airspace, particularly at altitudes of 200 feet or less. Findings: The GID hereby makes finding (1). Facts in Support of Findings: (a) The FAA Air Traffic Manager at San Carlos Airport has expressed this concern. He has not, however, stated that the Project would represent a "hazard" or "risk," but only that the job of the air traffic controllers could be made more difficult. In fact, he stated at a public meeting on May 23, 1996, that he had not reached the conclusion that the building represents a "hazard" to navigation, and further any statement to that effect attributed to him in the press is a misquote. (b) To determine the extent to which this issue could create problems, it is useful to assess the likelihood and frequency of the conditions described. The conditions that would result in aimraft maneuvering at altitudes of 200 feet or less within the vicinity of the Project are in the extreme: a cloud ceiling of around 300 feet with one mile visibility. These conditions are not a regular or frequent occurrence. If they do occur, however, the Air Traffic Manager has questioned whether staff would be willing to provide visual separation for more than two or three SVFR aircraft in the Class D airspace if they also had to be concerned about the altitude of such aircraft in the vicinity of the ten-story building. However, it would be even more rare to have more than three aircraft operating under SVFR clearances at any one time in the Class D airspace because of these separation requirements. 3.10.10 Potential Effect: Aircraft departing in the direction of Project buildings could be exposed to a collision hazard if the aircraft were not able to maintain a normal rate of climb. This may be particularly so for student pilots not accustomed to strong crosswind conditions, which could blow them over the Project site. Findings: The GID hereby makes finding (1). Facts in Support of Findings: (a) A Cessna 150 is a typical low-performance aircraft designed to operate with a maximum crosswind of 13 knots. Even with a 24-knot crosswind (the wind speed required to blow the aircraft off track and over the 1 O-story building), the aircraft would be at an altitude of about 474 feet MSL as it passed over the building, at a normal rate of climb. -27- GIDEIRFD.DOC 7/23/96 5;44 PM