Bakersfield, CA Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Applies to
- retail projects over 50,000 sq ft or 5 acres
- Loading/trash buffer
- 30 ft from residential property
- Restricted hours
- 10 p.m.–7 a.m. adjacent to residential
- Noise ceiling to operate at night
- under 3 dBA above background
- Measured
- at property line adjacent to residential land
Summary
Large Bakersfield retail projects must keep loading, trash and delivery noise from crossing 3 dBA above background at the property line adjacent to residential land, and must halt those operations from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. unless sound mitigation proves compliance.
I. Delivery/Loading and Solid Waste Operations for Projects Exceeding Fifty Thousand Square Feet of Gross Floor Area and/or Five Acres of Buildable Area. 1. No delivery, loading, trash removal or compaction, or other such operations shall be within thirty feet of any properties zoned or developed with residential uses. 2. In addition to compliance with the noise level performance standards table in the noise element of the Metropolitan General Plan for exterior daytime/nighttime exterior noise levels, other than trash removal by the city or its contractors, all loading, unloading, delivery, private refuse collection and related operations shall not be permitted between the hours of ten p.m. and seven a.m. adjacent to any land zoned or developed with residential uses. These activities may occur if the developer submits evidence to the city that sound mitigation will reduce the noise generated by such operations to less than three dBA above the measured background noise level at the same period for any three continuous minutes in any hour during the operation as measured at the property line adjacent to said residential lands.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 5221, passed July 15, 2026).
Full Breakdown
140(I) governs delivery, loading and solid-waste operations for retail developments exceeding 50,000 square feet of gross floor area or five acres of buildable area, the design-standards chapter that applies citywide to commercial zone districts and to any nonresidential zone containing retail components. Subsection (I)(1) forbids any delivery, loading, trash removal or compaction operation within 30 feet of property zoned or developed with residential uses. adjacent to residentially zoned or developed land. A developer can only run those operations during the restricted hours by submitting evidence that sound mitigation will hold the noise to less than 3 dBA above the measured background level, for any three continuous minutes in any hour, as measured at the residential-adjacent property line; that evidence must include background sound data taken without the equipment operating, modeling or test data on the proposed equipment, or comparable measured data from a similar site, all subject to city approval.
Subsection (I)(3) additionally requires loading docks near residential areas to have separate noise-attenuation walls and to be screened with evergreen trees planted 20 feet on center so the docks aren't visible from residential areas or public streets. 060, and a project that can't show the 3 dBA threshold is met loses its ability to operate loading/delivery functions during nighttime hours.
Violations & Fines
Because § 17.08.140 sits in the zoning title's design standards, noncompliance is addressed through the site plan review and building permit process administered by the planning division rather than through a standalone citation. A retail development that operates loading or delivery functions during the restricted 10 p.m.–7 a.m. window without the required sound-mitigation evidence on file is out of compliance with its approved site plan, which can trigger a stop-work order, code enforcement action, or conditions imposed before any further permits are issued.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Bakersfield shopping center run trash compactors at midnight next to houses?
How close can a loading dock be to a residential property in Bakersfield?
Does this noise rule apply to small commercial buildings?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bakersfield
California rules heatmap·Compare Bakersfield to another location·View the California noise ordinances overview
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Decibel Limits in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Kern County handle decibel limits.