SECTION 2. PURPOSE It
is recognized that people have the right to an environment free from excessive
noise.The purpose of this Law is to preserve
the public health, peace, welfare, and good order by suppressing noises which
are detrimental to that environment.
SECTION 3 NOISE LEVEL STANDARDS Any noise
exceeding the ambient noise level at the property line of any property in such
a manner plainly audible to involuntary listeners as to disturb the peace,
quiet and comfort of any reasonable person of normal sensitivities residing in
the area shall be unlawful under the provisions of this Law.
SECTION 4
DEFINITIONS As used in this Law, unless the context otherwise clearly
indicates, the words and phrases used in this Law are defined as follows:
Ambient Noise:Ambient Noise is the all-encompassing noise associated with a given
environment, being a composite of sounds from many sources near and far.
Barking Dogs: A dog that barks, bays, cries, howls,
or makes any other noise continuously and/or incessantly for a period of ten
minutes or barks intermittently for one-half hour or more to the disturbance of
any person at any time of the day or night, regardless of whether the dog is
physically situated in or upon private or commercial property, provided,
however, that a dog shall not be deemed a barking dog for purpose of this
Law, if, at the time the dog is barking or making any other noise, a person is
trespassing or threatening to trespass upon private property in or upon which
the dog is situated or for any other legitimate cause which teased or provoked
the dog.
Commercial Facility:Any premises, property, or facility involving traffic in goods or
furnishing of services for sale or profit.
Daytime Hours: The hours between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.,
Monday through Saturday, and the hours 9:00 a.m. through 10:00 p.m. on Sundays.
Demolition:Any dismantling, intentional destruction, or removal of buildings or
structures
Domestic Power Equipment:Power equipment including but not limited
to:power saws, drills, grinders, lawn
and garden tools, and other domestic power equipment intended for use in
residential areas by a homeowner.
Emergency:Any
occurrence or set of circumstance involving actual or imminent physical trauma
which demands immediate attention.
Emergency Vehicle: Any government authorized motor vehicle with
sound warning devices such as sirens and bells, which can lawfully be used when
responding to an emergency.
Emergency Work:Work made necessary to restore property to a safe condition following an
emergency, or work required to protect persons or property from exposure to
imminent danger.
Improper Vehicle Noise:Noise caused by skidding tires, improper
motor speed, or illegal muffling.
Lot:Any parcel of land under one ownership or
under common control of any group of persons acting in concert as part of a
common endeavor.
Loud and Unreasonable Noise:Noise so plainly audible to involuntary
listeners as to disturb the peace, quiet and comfort of any reasonable person
of normal sensitivities.
Motor Vehicle:Any vehicle which is propelled or drawn on land by a motor, such as, but
not limited to, passenger cars, trucks, truck-trailers, semi-trailers, campers,
go-carts, snowmobiles, amphibious craft on land, dune buggies, or racing
vehicles including motorcycles, trail bikes, go-carts, dirt-bikes or mini-bikes
and motorized all-terrain vehicles.
Muffler:A device
for abating sounds such as escaping gases from any internal combustion engine.
Nighttime Hours:Hours between 10:01 p.m. and 6:59 a.m. Sunday evening through Saturday
morning.Hours between 10:01 p.m. and
8:59 a.m. Saturday evening through Sunday morning.
Person:Any
individual, firm, partnership, association, syndicate, company, trust,
corporation, municipality, agency, or political or administrative subdivision
of the State or other legal entity of any kind.
Premises:Any
building, structure, land or portion thereof, including all appurtenance, and
shall include yards, lots, courts, inner yards, and real properties without
building or improvements, owned or controlled by a person.
Property Line:That real or imaginary line along the ground surface and its vertical
extension which (a) separates real property owned or controlled by any person
from continguous real property owned or controlled by another person, and (b)
separates real property from the public right-of-way.
SECTION 5
EXCEPTIONS TO THE NOISE LAW This noise law shall not apply to noise
emitted by or related to:
5A. Generally accepted agricultural practices conducted
within a recognized agriculture district.
5B.Events such as
but not limited to:
ุany funeral procession or religious ceremony
ุthe production of music in connection with any
parade authorized under provision of law
ุany music performance upon any public street or
place where authorized by law for such purpose
ุthe use of amplifiers or other sound producing
instruments in connection with any athletic competition or recreational event
held on athletic fields, stadiums or public parks, election campaigns
ุpolice or fire apparatus while used in the
performance of public duty
ุtraditional community volunteer activities
If it is anticipated that the event noise will continue into
the nighttime hours, then the applicant shall so state and the authorizing
agent may refer the request to the Village Board for approval.
5C.Church Bells:rung as part of any church ceremony or
service.
5D.Tower
Clock Bells:ringing the hour during
daytime hours.
5E.Sirens,
whistles or bells:lawfully used in
any emergency situation, provided, however, that burglar alarms not terminating
within thirty (30) minutes after being activated shall be unlawful.
5F.Other devices:required by OSHA or other State or Federal
safety regulations.
5G.Domestic muffled
power equipment:Noise from such as, but not limited to:
power saws, sanders, grinders, lawn and garden tools or similar devices
operated during daytime hours.
5H.Domestic
emergency power equipment:Noise
from such as, but not limited to:muffled gasoline generators and pumps operated during daytime and/or
nighttime hours for as long as the emergency exists.
5I.Timber harvesting:felling trees and removing logs from the
woods during daytime hours.
5J.Construction
or demolition equipment:noise
generated during the daytime hours.
5K.Emergency
construction:or repair work by
public utilities or municipalities.
5L.Refuse and
solid waste collection:
5M.Noise associated
with permitted business facilities during business hours.
SECTION 6 SPECIFIC
PROHIBITIONS
Loud and unreasonable noise from the following sources,
among others, are in violation of this Law.
6A.Radio, television
sets and similar devices, musical instruments, phonograph, or other
machine or
device for the producing or reproducing of sound used as entertainment
or
advertisement.
6B.Animals or
birds:Owning, possessing or harboring
an animal or bird which
frequently or
for continued duration, makes sounds which create a noise disturbance.
6C.Peddlers and
vendors:The unreasonable and
unnecessary sounding or crying out of
peddlers,
hawkers.
6D.Any source near
schools, hospitals, court and churches which interferes with the
working of
such institution.
6E.Construction,
alteration, demolition of buildings, structures and projects during
nighttime
hours:It shall be unlawful for any
person within a radius of five hundred
feet from the
structure, to operate equipment or perform any construction or repair
work on
buildings, structures, or projects or to operate any pile driver, excavationt
equipment,
pneumatic hammer, derrick, power heist, or other construction type
device except
to perform emergency work during nighttime hours.
6F.Vehicle
repairs:It shall be unlawful for any
person to repair, rebuild, or test any
motor vehicle
in such a manner as to disturb involuntary listeners.
6G.Vehicle Use:No person shall use an automobile,
motorcycle, bus or vehicle
so out of
repair as to create loud or unnecessary grating, rattling, or other
noise.
6H.Motor
Idling:No person shall operate any
motor/engine or any standing motor
vehicle with
a weight in excess of 10,000 pounds Manufacturers Gross Vehicle
Weight (GVW)
during nighttime hours, when such vehicle is parked on a
residential
premise or on a public road next to a residential premise.
6I.Bells:No person shall sound or cause to be sounded
any loud or raucous
bells or gongs
attached to any building or premises which disturb the quiet
or repose in
the vicinity thereof.
6J.Loading and
Unloading:No person shall create or
cause to be created a loud
and
unreasonable noise in connection with loading or unloading any vehicle,
or in
connection with loading or unloading any vehicle, or the opening and
destruction of
bales, boxes, crates, and containers.
6K.Discharge of
exhaust:No person shall discharge or
cause to be discharged into
the open air
the exhaust of any steam motor/engine, or stationary internal
combustion
motor/engine, except through a muffler or other device which will
effectively
prevent loud or explosive noises therefrom.
6L.Mechanical
devices:No person shall use or cause to
be used any mechanical
device
operated by compressed air unless the noise created thereby is
effectively
muffled.
6M.Other
sources:It shall be unlawful for any
person to willfully make or continue,
or cause to
be made or continued, any noise intended to disturb involuntary
listeners.
SECTION 7 COMPLIANCE
For the purpose of determining compliance with the provisions of this
Law, the law enforcement officer is authorized to make inspection of all noise
sources to determine the character of the noise.He may enter any building with the consent of
the owner or his agent.If consent is
not granted, the Officer may seek administrative warrant from an appropriate
court.
No person shall hinder, obstruct, delay, resist, prevent in
any way, interfere or attempt to interfere with any authorized person while in
the performance of his/her duties under this Law.
SECTION 8 PENALTY
Any person acting alone or in concert with others who shall violate any
provision of this Law shall be guilty of an offense and upon conviction thereof
shall be subject to a fine of not more than Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00)
or by imprisonment not exceeding fifteen (15) days, or byboth such fine and imprisonment.Each act committed in violation of any
provisions of this Law shall constitute a separate additional offense.
SECTION 9 MANNER OF
ENFORCEMENT Enforcement of the provisions of this Law is the
responsibility of law enforcement officers of OneidaCounty or New YorkState.
SECTION 10
SEVERABILITY Any provisions of the Zoning Ordinance of the Village of Bridgewater which are more stringent
than those set forth herein shall remain in force.If, for any reason, any word, clause,
paragraph or section of this Law shall be held to make the same
unconstitutional, this Law shall not hereby be invalidated and the remainder of
this Law shall continue in effect.
SECTION 11 CONFLICT
WITH STATE LAWS Nothing in this law shall be construed to conflict with
any law of the State of New York
that may govern or control any of the subject matters contained in this Law.
SECTION 12
EFFECTIVE DATE This Law shall become effective upon filing in the office
of the New York State Secretary of State.
SECTION 13
AMENDMENTS Any amendments to this local law must be enacted in accordance
with Article 3 of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
