Construction Vibrations

The City has received some questions and comments regarding vibrations associated with construction. Please see the notes below.

1. The City requires the contractor to hire a third-party firm to monitor vibrations during construction. The monitoring equipment is onsite and recording vibrations. The third-party firm notifies the City and contractor if excessive vibrations occurred, including when and where. No excessive vibrations have been observed to date during the project.
2. People are more sensitive in perceiving vibration than houses are to damage from vibration.
3. People begin to perceive vibration at around 0.005 in/sec peak particle velocity, while one of the lowest proposed allowable vibration levels for historic structures is at 0.05 in/sec - a factor of ten higher.
4. The “safe limit” to prevent threshold cracking of drywall in residential buildings has a base value of 0.75 in/sec for peak particle velocity. It would likely take readings of approximately 2-3 in/sec to actually produce drywall cracks. To crack a foundation would take well over 5 in/sec.
5. Street reconstruction and corresponding vibrations have occurred in Edina for over 20 years and deteriorating home foundations hasn’t been apparent.