Hanover — Residents opposed to Dartmouth College’s proposed 70,000-square-foot athletic facility off South Park Street packed a Planning Board meeting on Tuesday, voicing concern about the building’s size and appearance before the board entered its final deliberations on the project’s site plan review.

Board members deferred a decision on Tuesday night, citing lingering questions about sound impact. The board is scheduled to take up the matter again on Dec. 13.

Dartmouth is seeking site plan approval for a roughly $17.5 million facility that the school says will help athletes extend their training season during the colder months.

Residents of an abutting neighborhood east of campus, who include Planning Board Vice Chairwoman Kelly Dent, have organized against the project since last spring, challenging the college’s impact studies and hiring a lawyer to lobby the board.

— Staff report