At the San Jose City Council Rules Committee meeting on Feb. 16, the council members appointed Giardino to serve on the San Jose City Council Airport Noise Advisory Committee, a citizens' body that oversees issues of noise and curfew violations.

Although Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport is located near the intersection of Interstate 880 and Highway 101, planes taking shortcuts over Willow Glen have caused noise issues to hit too close to home for some residents. Giardino said the problem has worsened over the last couple of years and has the potential to impact the quality of life in Willow Glen.

"A high quality of life is why we live here and why we moved to this area," Giardino said. "One of the reasons I moved to this area was that it was not a part of the flight path."

Giardino said he began to log the times and airlines when he noticed planes cutting across Willow Glen. He also contacted the airport noise hotline and sent emails to San Jose District 6 Councilman Ken Yeager.

When a position on the advisory committee became vacant, Yeager sent emails to his constituents, and Giardino responded.

"Instead of just complaining, I thought I would do something about it," he said.

Yeager, who nominated Giardino to the committee, said he believed Giardino would bring a balanced approach to the board.

"He understands the position of the airport," Yeager said. "We want the airport to be successful and the facility easy to get around in. But it has to be a good neighbor. We have to demand that they take all the necessary precautions to reduce noise around the airport."

As a citizen representative to the airport, Giardino said he wants to comprehend both sides of the issue.

"I don't understand fully what airport personnel must deal with," he said. "I'm not close enough to that process to determine if any changes can be made. From a logistics standpoint, the airport has to deal with getting commuter flights out of here. The airport has an economic impact on the Silicon Valley and San Jose specifically."

Giardino's appointment preceded a San Jose City Council approval of a "minor amendment" to the airport master plan, which will increase the estimated size of terminal building space from just over 1 million square feet to 1.7 million square feet of enclosed building space.

But according to Yeager, residents concerned about noise need not be alarmed just yet. The approval, he said, is preliminary and further construction will require city council approval.

"The approval of the master plan is not an approval of actual buildings," he said. "For that to be approved, an environmental impact report needs to be done. The master plan itself does not require those studies."

Yeager said he would continue to monitor noise issues. And he said he encourages residents who have concerns about airport noise to contact the airport noise hotline at 408.452.0707.