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Noise Task Force To Meet In Dunedin

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: February 23, 2008

DUNEDIN, Fla. - DUNEDIN, Fla. - The public and members of the city's Noise Task Force have one more chance to sound off on possible revisions to the city's noise ordinance.

Starting at 2 p.m. this Tuesday, Feb. 26, the Noise Task Force will put the final touches on revisions to the noise ordinance the panel has been considering for the past year.

The task force meeting will take place at the Dunedin Community Center, in Highlander Park.

Under the proposed changes, according to Assistant City Manager Harry Gross, noise that is the subject of a complaint to the city will be measured by electronic decibel readings taken from the point at which the complaint is made, rather than the sound's point of origin.

Just what decibel level should be considered the violation threshold is one of the questions that will be explored Tuesday.

To be in violation of the ordinance the noise would have to negatively impact the comfort level of "a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities," the proposal states.

The owners of downtown restaurants and bars have requested that sound meters be used to determine a noise ordinance violation. Downtown establishments that offer musical entertainment have been the targets of many of the noise complaints.

Under the current noise restrictions, a single complaint could force a restaurant to stop playing music, the downtown hospitality business owners have complained. In many cases, the person complaining was actually objecting to the type of music being performed, not its sound volume, they say.

Everyone wants a balanced ordinance that is fair to both the businesses and residents living near the downtown retail and entertainment district, Gross says.

Some complaints the city receives involve mere annoyances, things no ordinance could control, according to Gross.

These annoyance complaints, Gross says, include the sound of people setting up the weekly Dunedin Green Market in Pioneer Park or patrons of downtown bars or restaurants shouting while leaving the establishments in the early morning hours.

The proposed ordinance would sets limitations on hours and days during amplified music can be played outdoors. The cut-off time would be 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and midnight Friday and Saturday.

While the work of drafting the revised noise ordinance is nearly complete, people who want to propose changes should attend Tuesday's meeting, Gross says.

Tuesday should be the last time the committee meets before an ordinance is brought to the City Commission next month, Gross predicts.

The city considered ordinances enacted in other areas and enlisted the expertise of an acoustic engineering consultant to make recommendations to the task force.

The ordinance also addresses noise created by sources other than music, such as: sound coming from amplifiers and boom boxes on moving vehicles or boats, manufacturing equipment, disturbing sounds from animals or birds, lawn equipment and machinery.

Violators of the ordinance could face fines of up to $500.

Noise created during special events would be exempt for noise provisions such as decibel levels.

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