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Despite a signed agreement between the Harbortown HOA and LFREP, any good faith attempts to work collaboratively with the developer to resolve issues of ongoing concern have thus far been met with a collective yawn and passing of the buck to the City of San Mateo. Instead of acknowledging the problem or taking responsibility LFREP has thus far chosen to play the victim and has instead chosen ignored the negative consequences that their development has had on many nearby residents and communities. Let us be clear — no one forced the developer to try and repurpose a commercial oHice building into a power hungry laboratory complex in such close proximity to residential areas. And simply ignoring the problem does not in any way lessen its environmental impact. It should be noted that, as with the proposed Redwood LIFE project, a noise analysis1 was conducted prior to construction which concludes, in part: Noise levels generated by the mechanical equipment enclosures at both buildings, which includes cooling towers, pumps, boilers, and compressors, are predicted to be well below the San Mateo ordinance requirement at all adjacent property lines. Noise generated by mechanical equipment in the enclosures at the property line along Mariner’s Island is predicted to be no more than around 48 dBA, which is comparable to the low end of the range of background noise levels measured at the site. The problem with the stated conclusions of this report and the resulting design solutions implemented is that decibel level alone fails to adequately characterize the impact of the resulting noise on the surrounding community. It is not just the overall decibel level but also the fundamental frequencies, levels, durations, and unique neighborhood characteristics (proximity, geometry, relative height, line of sight, etc.) which determine its overall impact. Furthermore, several studies suggest that chronic exposure to low frequency noise (LFN) can have a detrimental impact on hearing, stress, mental health, sleep, cognitive ability, and cardiovascular function. Over reliance on the conclusions of a single report performed by an acoustic consultant should not automatically insulate a developer from its long-term responsibilities to the community or its neighbors. Quantitative pronouncements and stated conclusions do not automatically make the noise go away nor lessen its negative impact. Sometimes mistakes are made or assumptions fail to take into account the overall complexity of the problem and thus trivialize the need for robust design solutions or mitigation techniques. Noise attenuation and mitigation technologies no doubt exist but as implementation of these options add both complexity and expense a developer must be properly incentivized to take advantage of such solutions. While partially implemented at the San Mateo Science Center, much more could and should have been done to protect the community from the resulting noise and the potential long term impact on its neighbors. I therefore urge 1 San Mateo Bay Center Environmental Noise Analysis Summary, Colin Gordon Associates, April 25, 2022