Facts
The complainant, the owner of Parcel No. 2980 in Visp, filed an objection to the project for the "Kleegärtenstrasse Nord" road section. The Federal Court had to decide whether the planned road complies with the statutory noise protection regulations. The complainant's parcel is located in a residential zone and is built with a single-family house. The Federal Court examined where the planning values for road traffic noise must be observed. According to Articles 41 and 39 of the Noise Abatement Ordinance (LSV), the planning values apply only in the actually existing noise-sensitive rooms of the existing building, but not in places where further buildings could be erected under building and planning law (utilization reserves). This different treatment of built-up and unbuilt properties was considered lawful by the Federal Court. The Federal Court confirmed that the planned 2-meter-high noise barrier is sufficient to comply with the planning value on the complainant's property. An increase of the wall to 4 meters was considered disproportionate. The granted exemptions beyond the immission limit value were also considered permissible, as the development of the property remains possible, albeit with certain restrictions on the arrangement of the rooms.Considerations
In legal terms, the Federal Court came to the following conclusions: 1. For built-up properties, the planning values apply only in the actually existing noise-sensitive rooms of the existing building, but not in places where further buildings could be erected under building and planning law (utilization reserves). This different treatment of built-up and unbuilt properties is lawful and can be justified by the fact that existing buildings can be assumed to have a longer-term existence, while the planned development of unbuilt properties is usually also realized. 2. The granting of exemptions beyond the…