The Portola Music Festival [1] is returning to San Francisco’s Pier 80 this Saturday and Sunday, September 20-21, with a lineup that includes LCD Soundsystem, Dom Dolla, Christina Aguilera, Peggy Gou, The Chemical Brothers, Underworld, NEIL FRANCES, Blood Orange, Bob Moses, Rico Nasty, and many more.
[2]That sounds great to fans, yet many Alamedans are dreading loud bass booms, especially on Sunday night when many people are hoping to get some sleep. But the festival-related noise issues here in Alameda have improved considerably over the past two years. In response to community complaints, organizers have taken a number of steps to mitigate those impacts, including ending amplified sound at 10:45 on Sunday night.
According to the City of Alameda [3], organizers have successfully lowered the overall decibel level with new equipment and reconfigured the stages as well as the direction of speakers. Plus, they placed two stationary sound monitors in Alameda and added a dedicated roaming sound monitor based on the island. Upon receiving a complaint, the decibel-level reading at the monitor closest to the complaint location is reported to the sound engineer to determine next steps.
Those noise-mitigating measures seemed to work in 2024, at least for most Alamedans. Total complaints from Alameda and the East Bay went down from 203 in 2023 to 80 in 2024, according to a KTVU News report [4].
Hopefully the noise-level improvements will continue to work well this weekend, but if the boom-boom-boom rattles your windows you can call a special noise hotline at 877-324-8151 to report your complaint and they will respond in real-time, according to a City of Alameda post [5] on Facebook. Please do not call Alameda Police Department for noise complaints—911 and APD dispatch services are reserved for local emergencies.
Meanwhile, organizers encourage everyone planning to attend the Portola event to consider public transit, biking, or walking if possible. The festival’s Get Here, Get Out [6] webpage provides information on location/entrances, BART/shuttles, SFMTA/Muni, Caltrain, biking, and more.