Noise Levels in South Park, Des Moines, IA | Find Quiet Neighborhoods With Our Sound Map
59 dBA
Average noise across South Park
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
1,762
Residents above the EPA 55 dBA threshold
60% of South Park residents
75 dBA
Loudest residential point
City bus interior
This map shows modeled outdoor noise across South Park at 100-meter resolution, combining road, aviation, and rail sources. Green areas measure below 45 dBA. Orange and red exceed the EPA's 55 dBA outdoor threshold linked to long-term health effects. Use the layer toggles to view each source on its own or all together.
What the numbers sound like
- 30 dBAWhisper
- 40 dBASoft rainfall
- 45 dBAQuiet suburban street at night
- 50 dBAQuiet office
- 55 dBAEPA outdoor threshold: light traffic 100 ft away
- 60 dBANormal conversation an arm's length away
- 65 dBABusy restaurant
- 70 dBAHighway traffic 50 ft away
- 80 dBACity bus interior
Population Above the EPA Outdoor Threshold
The EPA's 55 dBA outdoor reference level is a common benchmark for residential noise exposure, especially for activity interference, annoyance, and long-term community noise concerns. About 1,762 South Park residents, or 60.5%, live above that level. By land area, 64.2% of South Park is above 55 dBA.
35.8% below 55 dBA
64.2% above 55 dBA
See how noise in South Park compares to similar-sized neighborhoods.
Noise by Part of South Park
Average noise levels for South Park residents, grouped by direction from the center of South Park. The highest population-weighted average is in southern South Park; the lowest is in northern South Park, where just 62% of residents live in blocks above the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, roughly the same as the share in the loudest section.
Southern South Park
63.4 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Central South Park
62.6 dBA · Loud
Busy restaurant
Northern South Park
60.7 dBA · Loud
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
To the human ear, noise in southern South Park sounds about 21% louder than in northern South Park, a 2.7 dBA gap. Every 10 dBA roughly doubles perceived loudness. Within any of these directions, two homes a quarter mile apart can still differ by 10 or more dBA depending on how close they sit to a major highway.
How far back from US-69 N do you need to be?
US-69 N produces an estimated 72 dBA at its loudest centerline points. Noise drops logarithmically with distance, with the exact rate depending on what's between you and the road. Tree cover, walls, terrain, and pavement type all matter. At roughly a quarter mile back, traffic fades into the noise level of a soft rainfall.
At source
72 dBA
City bus interior
165 ft
58 dBA
Normal conversation an arm’s length away
330 ft
51 dBA
Quiet office
660 ft
43 dBA
Quiet suburban street at night
¼ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
½ mile
35 dBA
Soft rainfall
Calculated from the model's calibrated attenuation formula. About 25% of South Park sits under tree canopy (heavier than most neighborhoods) and roughly 33% is impervious surface like pavement and rooftops. Both are folded into the per-place decay rate above. Heavier canopy pulls noise down faster with distance; impervious surfaces slow the drop.
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Airport Noise
Des Moines International (DSM) sits west of South Park. The U.S. Department of Transportation models aviation noise around this airport from federal traffic data, and the model uses those federal measurements rather than synthetic predictions.
Blocks under the approach and departure paths carry combined road-plus-aviation noise, with some exceeding 55 dBA on the map's Overall layer. Blocks on the opposite side of South Park, particularly to the east, show no measurable aviation contribution. Use the Aviation toggle on the map above to isolate the airport's footprint.
How Noise Is Distributed Across South Park
The bar chart below shows the share of South Park residents in each noise band. About 16% of residents live below the EPA's 55 dBA threshold, and roughly 37% live in blocks above 60 dBA. Long-term exposure in that range is linked to elevated stress hormones and cardiovascular risk.
How South Park Compares
South Park sits at the quieter end of the spectrum. Below: how South Park's average outdoor noise and share of residents above the EPA threshold compare with Capitol Park, north-of-grand-des-moines-ia, waveland-park-des-moines-ia, and sherman-hill-des-moines-ia.
Average noise level (dBA)
South Park's 58.9 dBA pop-weighted average is at the quieter end of the spectrum. Iowa as a whole averages 52.2 dBA and the U.S. averages 52.0 dBA. Both are lower than South Park because most of either area is rural land away from major roads.
Share of residents above 55 dBA
About 60.5% of South Park residents live in blocks where outdoor levels exceed the EPA's 55 dBA threshold. That's in the middle of its peer group. Measured by land area instead, 64.2% of South Park's footprint sits above 55 dBA, against a Iowa average of 23.6% and a national average of 28.1%.
What This Means if You're Moving to South Park
- Distance from highways matters more than the neighborhood name. Two homes in the same zip code can differ by 20 dBA if one sits 100 meters from US-69 N and the other 500 meters away. The model captures this at 100-meter resolution, so noise exposure changes block by block.
- Tree canopy can help reduce modeled noise exposure. Roughly 25% of South Park is under tree cover (heavier than most neighborhoods), and the dominant land cover is low-intensity developed land. Both are measured from federal USDA Forest Service and USGS satellite imagery at 30-meter resolution. Streets with 60% or higher canopy show 3 to 5 dBA lower noise than comparable streets with bare ground or pavement, which is why the per-place decay rate above already accounts for it.
- Airport noise is directional. Des Moines International's approach paths concentrate aviation noise to the west. Neighborhoods to the east of downtown show no measurable contribution from the airport.
