A data center in unincorporated Santa Clara County must not exceed 55 dBA daytime or 45 dBA nighttime at a neighboring residential property line under Noise Ordinance Section B11-152. Air-handling equipment carries a stricter 45 dBA residential-line cap.
Santa Clara County's Noise Ordinance — Ordinance Code Division B11, Chapter VIII (Control of Noise and Vibration), Section B11-152 — sets exterior noise limits measured at the receiving property. For one- and two-family residential property the limit is 55 dBA during the day (7 a.m.-10 p.m.) and 45 dBA at night (10 p.m.-7 a.m.); commercial is 65/60 and light industrial 70. The ordinance's air-conditioning and air-handling equipment rule is tighter, barring such equipment — the category covering data-center cooling — from exceeding 45 dBA at a neighboring residential property line, or 40 dBA at a patio or living-area window nearest the unit.
Noise above the Section B11-152 limits at a neighboring property line is a violation enforced by the County; operators can be required to mitigate cooling and generator noise until measured sound conforms.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Santa Clara County, CA
Unincorporated Santa Clara County's Noise Ordinance includes a motor-vehicle noise provision (Section B11-155). On public roads, vehicle exhaust and muffler ...
Santa Clara County, CA
Unincorporated Santa Clara County's Noise Ordinance treats animal noise as a disturbance: keeping any animal or bird that barks, howls, meows or squawks cont...
Santa Clara County, CA
In unincorporated Santa Clara County, Section B11-154 prohibits construction, drilling, repair, alteration or demolition noise that creates a disturbance acr...
Santa Clara County, CA
In unincorporated Santa Clara County, the County Noise Ordinance (Division B11, Chapter VIII) sets stricter nighttime exterior noise limits from 10:00 p.m. t...
Santa Clara County, CA
Oversized and heavy vehicles face restrictions in unincorporated Santa Clara County. Commercial vehicles over 10,000 pounds gross weight rating are barred fr...
Santa Clara County, CA
Heavy commercial vehicles are restricted from parking in residential areas of unincorporated Santa Clara County. County rules generally bar parking commercia...
See how Santa Clara County's data center noise limits rules stack up against other locations.
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.