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<br />Redwood City Noise Ordinance regulations. Construction and operational noise and vibration impacts were found to
<br />be less than significant after mitigation in the form of studies and conditions of approval.
<br />The DTPP Plan-Wide Amendments program SEIR (pp. 11-20 through 11-22) generally concurred with the DTPP
<br />EIR conclusion with respect to DTPP development construction noise levels potentially exceeding City guidelines
<br />and State Title 24 standards but explained that though DTPP program EIR Mitigation Measure 11-1 required noise
<br />studies, the City determined that after the 2015 California Supreme Court decision in California Building Industry
<br />Association v. Bay Area Air Quality Management District,27 DTPP EIR Mitigation Measure 11-1 would no longer
<br />apply. However, as explained in the DTPP Plan-Wide Amendments program SEIR (pp. 11-18 through 11-19), the
<br />City decided to continue to enforce certain DTPP Final EIR noise-related mitigation measures as conditions of
<br />approval (with clarifying edits) for subsequent development applications, as warranted. These are “Condition of
<br />Approval 11a: Noise Reduction Measures for Multifamily Housing” and “Condition of Approval 11b: Groundborne
<br />Vibration Measures for Habitable Buildings.” Condition of Approval 11a does not apply to the proposed Commercial
<br />Component because it is not multifamily housing (the proposed multifamily project component at 920 Shasta Street,
<br />discussed below, is not located in the DTPP area). Condition of Approval 11b does not apply to this component
<br />because it is not within 100 feet of the Caltrain or California High Speed Railtracks.
<br />The DTPP Plan-Wide Amendments program SEIR included Mitigation Measure NO-1 (“Construction Noise
<br />Reduction”), which restates Mitigation Measure 11-4 from the DTPP Final EIR with no revisions. SEIR Mitigation
<br />Measure NO-1 requires noise control measures related to preparing a detailed construction plan, restricting the hours
<br />of construction consistent with the City’s municipal code (weekdays only between the hours of 7:00 AM and 8:00
<br />PM, except as authorized), construction equipment mufflers and maintenance, stationary noise-generating equipment
<br />placement as far as possible from sensitive receptors, construction traffic management, quiet construction equipment
<br />use, use of temporary barriers and noise blankets, and possible designation of a noise disturbance coordinator as
<br />consistent with the City’s General Plan. This mitigation measure, which shall be required as a condition of approval,
<br />was found to reduce the potential impacts related to construction noise to a less-than-significant level.
<br />The DTPP Plan-Wide Amendments program SEIR (pp. 11-22 through 11-27) also generally concurred with the DTPP
<br />EIR conclusion with respect to stationary noise sources and traffic noise generated from DTPP development.
<br />However, the DTPP Plan-Wide Amendments program SEIR explained that noise impacts from mechanical equipment
<br />would be uncertain due to the specific type, size, and locations of mechanical equipment on DTPP area development
<br />sites and could result in potentially severe noise impacts. Therefore, the SEIR included Mitigation Measure NO-2
<br />(“Operational Noise Performance Standard”). Mitigation Measure NO-2 requires submittal by project applicants of
<br />an acoustical study during final building design, for review and approval by the City, which evaluates potential
<br />building mechanical equipment noise generation and identifies necessary design measures to meet City standards. To
<br />help implement this mitigation measure, a site-specific noise study was prepared for the Commercial Component
<br />(“901 El Camino Real Project, Noise And Vibration Assessment, Redwood City, California,” Illingworth & Rodkin,
<br />Inc., July 1, 2024).
<br />The Illingworth & Rodkin noise study reviewed the Commercial Component, an office building in downtown
<br />Redwood City that would consist of six stories with ground-floor office and a teen center/multi-purpose space, plus
<br />offices above and a seventh-story rooftop terrace area. Noise sources from the Commercial Component would include
<br />short-term construction noise, project-related traffic increases, potential rooftop mechanical equipment noise, and
<br />trucking loading/unloading activities. The primary noise source at the Commercial Component site are identified as
<br />train horns, traffic along El Camino Real, and bus stop activities such as engine revving, bus lowering, warning signal
<br />beeping, etc. The noise analysis is based on two long-term (LT-1 and LT-2) and four short-term (ST-1 through ST-4)
<br />noise measurements conducted for the project applicant between June 7, 2023, and June 8, 2023, by A3 Acoustics,
<br />LLP, to establish the existing noise environment. Hourly average noise levels measured at LT-1, made in the
<br />northwestern corner of the project site approximately 50 feet northeast of the centerline of El Camino Real, ranged
<br />from 67 to 73 dBA Leq (average of 69 dBA Leq) during daytime hours between 7:00 AM and 10:00 PM, with a
<br />maximum instantaneous noise level of 80 dBA Lmax. Hourly average noise levels measured at LT-2, made in the
<br />northeastern corner of the project site approximately 15 feet south of the centerline of Winklebleck Street, ranged
<br />from 62 to 68 dBA Leq (average of 66 dBA Leq) during daytime hours, with a maximum instantaneous noise level
<br />of 85 dBA Lmax. Short-term noise measurements were made over 15-minute periods, with the following results: ST-
<br />
<br /> 27 The 2015 California Supreme Court decision in California Building Industry Association v. Bay Area Air Quality
<br />Management District ruled that CEQA does not require environmental review of the impacts of the environment on future users
<br />or residents of a project except in certain situations or where the proposed project itself would “exacerbate” the existing
<br />environmental condition.
<br />ATTY/RESO.0031/CC RESO CEQA GUIDELINES (901 EL CAMINO REAL)
<br />REV: 04-22-25 VR
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