Boulder, CO Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Section 9-3-10's legislative intent explains the overlay exists to address land near Boulder Municipal Airport that may be affected by aircraft accidents and by noise, vibrations, fumes, dust, smoke, fuel particles, and other operational impacts, while protecting the airport's capacity to serve the city's air transportation needs. The section establishes four overlay zones on the Airport Influence Overlay Zone Map, layered on top of underlying zoning, with the strictest controls closest to the runway. In Zone Four, anyone annexing to the city and then building a new principal structure must sign a recorded avigation easement as a condition of the building permit, and all new utility lines must go underground.

Zone Two adds substantive use restrictions: no new residential use, including nursing homes and group care facilities, is permitted, and schools, hospitals, churches, libraries, hotels, motels, and daycare facilities are allowed only if the city manager finds the site plan substantially alleviates the noise and safety concerns described in the section's intent. Zone One is the most restrictive, permitting no new construction other than airport construction itself, with nonconforming uses losing their status if discontinued for a year. City-wide, no person may create electrical interference with navigational signals, mimic airport lights, or cause glare affecting aircraft, and federal height limits under FAR Part 77 require a clear area five hundred feet wide, centered on the runway centerline, extending outward at a 7:1 slope.