Eligible communities include Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Bankers Hill, Middletown, Golden Hill and South Park
By Lorie Weisberg / San Diego Union-Tribune / July 11, 2025
San Diego International Airport has been awarded $15 million in federal funds that will go a long way toward soundproofing hundreds of nearby homes impacted by the roar of arriving and departing planes.
In all, 18 airports in California were awarded grants from the Federal Aviation Administration. The funding comes through the Airport Improvement Program, which earmarks funds for airport infrastructure projects, like runways, taxiways, noise mitigation, airport signage and airport lighting.
The grant comes at a time when there’s continuing uncertainty surrounding a wide variety of federal grant programs that are being reevaluated by the current administration.
“Californians and the millions of people who visit our state each year deserve a safe and easy airport travel experience,” Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., said of the airport awards. “That starts with modernizing and rehabilitating outdated airport infrastructure. These critical investments will not just make travel smoother for passengers, but will reduce noise pollution in neighboring communities.”
San Diego’s grant will be used strictly for addressing those residences affected by airport noise exposure. For more than two decades the airport has had what’s known as a Quieter Home Program that assists homeowners directly affected by overhead flights. Eligible communities include Point Loma, Ocean Beach, Bankers Hill, Middletown, Golden Hill and South Park. To date, the program has been responsible for retrofitting 5,929 homes.
Los Angeles International Airport was awarded $22.8 million for a similar program that will serve 400 homeowners.
Among the noise mitigation measures San Diego’s program provides for free are retrofitted exterior doors and windows, installation of a ventilation system, and more modest measures like placing weather stripping and caulking around openings. The ventilation system can include an air conditioning system or an air exchange system, depending on individual home factors.
To qualify, a property must be located within the designated geographic area and have habitable areas inside the home with average noise levels of 45 decibels or greater with all windows closed. Homeowners can go online to submit an application or call the Quieter Home Program office at 619-400-2660.
Realistically, though, it could take some time before you could see improvements to your home, even if you qualify, given that there is a waitlist. Priority is given to those in the loudest noise-impacted areas and those with the longest length of ownership. General time on the waitlist is one to two years years, although in the past it has been as long as five to six years, said airport spokesperson Nicole Hall.
Knowing the back story of why there is a Quieter Home Program is important. As airports transitioned from propeller airlines to jet airlines, the increased noise caused thousands of people to lose their hearing, as well as even more serious health issues. People ganged together and sued airports and the courts rolled all those lawsuits together in Class Action suits. Eventually the United States Supreme Court found the Airport authorities liable for the hearing and other medical damage. To develop a plan to pay off the people who lost their hearing, cash settlements were agreed upon. Then the airports hired acoustical engineering studies to map the 65dB(A) sound contour to determine how many thousands of homes had to be retrofitted with soundproofing to reduce the sound inside all the houses to below 65dB(A). Houses determined to be eligible for inclusion on the National Register will get wood windows and doors that meet the National Parks standard, which also means the houses are not disqualified form local designation. All mitigation is paid for by the Quieter Home Program. Getting federal money to pay for the sound mitigation is a way for Congress to help the Airport Authorities.