State Review Of Borough Noise Ordinance Expected To Take Months

By Andrew Gorosko

The state is expected to take several months to review the noise control ordinance recently approved by the Borough Board of Burgesses to ensure that the ordinance meets the state’s minimum noise control standards.

Joseph Foutz, an air quality control engineer in the state Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Bureau of Air Management, said Tuesday he will be reviewing the ordinance enacted by the burgesses January 9 to ensure that it meets state noise control standards. If the ordinance meets the state standards, it will be returned to the borough for legal publication. The ordinance would take effect 30 days after publication.

 The borough noise ordinance must be at least as stringent as the DEP’s noise control standards to gain DEP approval, Mr Foutz stressed. If the DEP has concerns about provisions in the borough ordinance, it would provide its comments to the burgesses, on which the burgesses could base revisions to the ordinance, Mr Foutz said.

If the burgesses then make revisions which bring the ordinance into compliance with state noise standards, the state would endorse the borough’s document, Mr Foutz said.

Besides his technical review of the borough noise ordinance, the document will be submitted for a legal review by state attorneys, Mr Foutz said.

It may take two to three months, or perhaps longer, to perform those reviews, depending on workflow and state staffing levels, Mr Foutz said. The state review may be complete by May or June, he said.

Mr Foutz said there are five similar municipal noise control ordinances awaiting his review, before the borough’s ordinance is reviewed. Those ordinances include noise control legislation from East Hartford, West Haven, and Ansonia, he said.

Noise Rules

On January 9, the Borough Board of Burgesses approved a noise control ordinance that is less strict than the burgesses’ initial ordinance proposal – a measure which had drawn strong criticism at a public hearing last month.

Senior Burgess James Gaston has said the noise ordinance was modified to reflect public comments which were made at the December 12 public hearing about the earlier, stricter version of the ordinance.

That earlier version of the ordinance attracted pointed criticism, especially from a representative of Newtown Shopping Village, a shopping center on Queen Street owned by real estate developer Joseph Kasper. At the December session, attorney Daniel Shepro, representing Mr Kasper, said the ordinance was aimed directly at the shopping center and could economically damage the commercial complex.

The burgesses have rejected those claims.

The noise control ordinance is intended to prevent, limit, control, and eliminate excessive noise in the borough for the welfare of borough residents. The burgesses’ rationale for the noise control ordinance is that excessive noise degrades the environment and is detrimental to the health, safety, and welfare of borough residents.

The ordinance sets standards that prohibit certain commercial and industrial activities during the overnight hours, including loading and unloading; refuse collection; vehicle operations; street sweeping; lawn mowing; and mechanical equipment operation.

The ordinance would allow borough officials to inspect the premises about which complaints have been filed, or if they are refused access, to seek a search warrant from a judge to obtain access. Officials enforcing the ordinance could seek court orders to stop noise problems.

Penalties for ordinance violations would be $100 per day per violation.

In general, the changes which the burgesses made to the ordinance after the December public hearing reduce the overnight time periods during which noise-generating activities would be prohibited in the borough.