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Woodside council rules on Menlo Country Club noise ruckus

Original post made on Aug 14, 2019

Debbie Mendelson bought her home on Sheridan Way in Woodside more than 30 years ago, but she says it wasn't until after she moved in that she discovered she had a large and noisy next-door neighbor in the Menlo Country Club.

Read the full story here Web Link posted Wednesday, August 14, 2019, 10:57 AM

Comments (15)

Posted by laughing
a resident of Menlo Park: Fair Oaks
on Aug 14, 2019 at 11:37 am

Oh brother!!!! This is like the people who buy a home near a school/airport/train/etc...then complain about the noise!!! Get a grip on reality!! You KNEW where you bought!!!


Posted by Robert
a resident of Woodside: Kings Mountain/Skyline
on Aug 14, 2019 at 12:30 pm

laughing nailed it!
Why do some people insist in making a fool of themselves in such a public forum. I would run and hide.


Posted by Downtowner
a resident of Menlo Park: Central Menlo Park
on Aug 14, 2019 at 1:04 pm

Isn't it likely that the # of events/meets has increased over the years? Replacing a one story building with a bigger 2 story building will certainly change the volume. If the 2 story building is set between the pool and Sheridan Way, and has no windows on the side facing Sheridan Way, the building may block sounds from the pool & bounce it toward 280 instead.

Sounds waves bounce. A new 2 story spec house built next door to me where all the other homes were single story, enabled several of us to suddenly hear traffic noises from Santa Cruz Ave that we'd never heard in the previous 20 years. Weather changes the sounds waves too. During winter, overcast damp weather (not even raining) weather, I cannot hear CalTrain but I do hear it in warm dry weather, even with windows closed.

Woodside Hills neighbors who support the club may not in the sound path or may be club members. Their properties may not abut the pool/entertainment area of the Club either. Unless home buyers 30 years ago toured the Club grounds or were at the home during a pistol-started track meet, they'd have had no way of knowing about the noise if the owner or agent didn't tell them. What are the chances MCC lets prospective neighbors come in & tour the place?

I think the Planning Commission & Town Council blew it on this call.





Posted by Blondie
a resident of Menlo Park: Fair Oaks
on Aug 14, 2019 at 2:14 pm

Blondie is a registered user.


I feel for the neighbors about this change. The couple has been living there 30 years. They did not know that there would be so much sound from the country club. To all the people that responded above, how would you feel if it was your home?


Posted by NotLaughing
a resident of Woodside: Emerald Hills
on Aug 14, 2019 at 4:42 pm

“laughing” is spewing out the most tired and trite line in the book. “...people who buy a home near a school/airport/train/etc...then complain about the noise!!! Get a grip on reality!! You KNEW where you bought!!!”. Anyone who has lived in this area for long knows a huge amount can change in 30 years. Who can predict what any institution will do in 30 years? Rather than assume these neighbors are foolish, maybe the Town and the Club could do the right thing and work with the neighbors to mitigate the impact of the Clubs remodel. Sometimes it takes the prevailing government entity to give a little push to make this process work. Too bad the Woodside Town Council whiffed on this one.


Posted by 60 yrs in the neighborhood
a resident of Woodside: Woodside Hills
on Aug 15, 2019 at 10:05 am

Let's face it, the Bay Area and noise pollution are nothing close to what was here 30 years ago. Sheridan Way also gets to enjoy the incessant noise from Woodside High School's football field--rented out to screaming crowds and their play-by-play announcements most weekends. Woodside Road has 50 times the volume of traffic compared to 30 years ago, as does the 280 freeway--a constant drone 24/7--which also divides Woodside Hills from the downtown. Aircraft noise above is nearly continuous with jetliners on their approach flight paths and flight instructors choosing Woodside Hills as their designated practice area for single engine stalls and turns every Saturday and Sunday.

For me it's all more tolerable than the yappy dog living next door with an owner who does nothing night or day.


Posted by West Menlo
a resident of Menlo Park: Sharon Heights
on Aug 15, 2019 at 12:51 pm

Then move.

Yes, things tend to get more crowded over time than less crowded. And more noisy than less noisy. If you don't like the changes, THEN MOVE. Very simple. I think if you look at the outskirts of La Honda, or maybe some of the back roads of Pescadero, you might find the peace and quiet you are looking for, for now at least. But who knows what might be the case in ten years when these areas become more populated.


Posted by Close but not
a resident of Menlo Park: Sharon Heights
on Aug 15, 2019 at 2:09 pm

How one-sided. No comment from Menlo? The school is super loud too, no comment on that. And glossing over the rules not previously in place now enacted? What was Menlo's use permit before? How much did it expand? Are we to believe Menlo is making no effort to work with the residents? The article seems to suggest as much. Menlo has been there basically forever and the home owners expect Menlo to modify their usage because they (now) have a neighbor that is unhappy. Maybe that is unfair.. but should Menlo be precluded from using its property? 5 meet days and MAYBE 20 other events doesn't seem like a lot for a business. I host more parties than that. Council also seems open to reviewing the ruling in 12 months, so residents should make their case there and then not here where it sounds like, dare I say, sour grapes.


Posted by Woodside Mom
a resident of Woodside: Woodside Heights
on Aug 15, 2019 at 2:16 pm

Most concerning in this article is the decibel level approved. Council member Sean Scott recommended an 85 decibel maximum sound level. A quick search will find that “a decibel level of 85 can cause permanent damage to the inner ear leading to hearing loss.” Children can be especially harmed by this decibel level. Sadly, one must conclude that Woodside Town Council member Sean Scott is not concerned about the people of Woodside or our children.


Posted by laughing
a resident of Menlo Park: Fair Oaks
on Aug 15, 2019 at 4:23 pm

85 db is the equivalent of passing traffic...with a safe exposure for 8 hours. So unless junior is sticking his head IN traffic...he will be just fine!! Jeez!!! You people are incredible!!! You could be listening to gunshots and screaming sirens. Enjoy the sound of people competing in fun sporting events and having fun at Country Clubs swimming in pools. This is just hilarious!!!!!!!!!


Posted by Downtowner
a resident of Menlo Park: Central Menlo Park
on Aug 15, 2019 at 8:08 pm

@ laughing

Good to know that based on your remarks, you never have or will complain about SurfAir.


Posted by Laughing
a resident of Menlo Park: Fair Oaks
on Aug 15, 2019 at 9:17 pm

I don’t complain about utter nonsense...I fly on planes, I drive a car, I ride trains, etc....What I am not is a HYPOCRITE. Do as we say not as we do. Guess what?? With life comes noise. If you want silence...go live somewhere that is so rural that you won’t be bothered. Then while you are at it, please do not do anything that may make a noise that might upset someone. This is a total joke. Most of those Uber rich Woodside people fly in and out of the Bay Area in private...noisy...Jets


Posted by NotLsughing
a resident of Woodside: Emerald Hills
on Aug 15, 2019 at 10:53 pm

@Laughing
You may not be a hypocrite, and that’s great. But your approach of laughing at others who don’t share your views is more than a little condescending. Perhaps if you opened your mind and your heart a little the world might see the real you, one that’s a lot more gracious than what you are presenting in this forum. The world needs more understanding and care of fellow humans, not insecure angry bluster.


Posted by Laughing
a resident of Menlo Park: Fair Oaks
on Aug 15, 2019 at 11:33 pm

Seriously???? How can you not laugh!!! People complaining about “noise” from a Country Club...during reasonable hours!!! That is rich...literally!!!! This is a waste of tax payer dollars, City Counsel time and resources!!!! This is beyond pathetic and if laughing is what it takes to stomach it...so be it!!!!!! Find a real topic...homelessness, illegal drug addiction, crime , the lack of affordable housing for people who make a decent living....then we can talk. In the mean time...enough of this privileged nonsense about “noise” coming from a Country Club!!!!!!!


Posted by La Hondan
a resident of another community
on Sep 16, 2019 at 4:29 pm

I live in La Honda (and often wonder why La Honda is not one of the options when selecting neighborhoods on this forum, BTW.) It is not quiet in La Honda. Every weekend when the motorcycles and car racers come out here, it is very, very loud. And we're on the flight path to SFO, and we have Life Flight, Coast Guard and other helicopters, private planes, chickens, barking dogs, logging trucks, lots of beach traffic, music at Apple Jacks or Play Bowl, etc. It is not like living by the railroad tracks or 280, but I definitely chuckled when someone on this forum suggested that La Honda was quiet...


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