Article 8: Noise By-law
To see if the Town will vote to
amend section 13-2-6 of the General Bylaws, by deleting the current text
of section 13-2-6 in its entirety and
replacing it with the following:
Recognizing that people have a
right to and should be ensured an environment free from excessive sound and
vibration capable of jeopardizing their health, safety, or welfare, or of
degrading their quality of life, this section is enacted to protect, preserve
and promote the health, safety, welfare, and quality of life of the citizens of
Provincetown.
The following definitions shall apply to Section
dBA:
A-weighted sound level in decibels, as measured by a general purpose sound
level meter complying with the provisions of the American National Standards
Institute, “Specifications for Sound Level Meters (
Amplification devices or similar equipment, includes, but is not limited to: phonograph, radio, television, stereo, record player, tape player, cassette player, compact disk player, digital music player, “boom box”, loud speaker, or other sound amplification device.
13-2-6-1. Noise
Permitted By Person In Charge. No person occupying or having charge of
any building, premises (including public places), mobile or stationary vehicle,
or any part thereof, shall cause, suffer or allow unnecessarily loud, excessive
or unusual noise in Town, regardless of its nature, source or manner of
production or reproduction, including but not limited to amplification devices
or similar equipment, which cause or
result in a noise level measured as follows:
a)
In any
residential district, as defined by the Zoning By-law , in excess of 45 dBA between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. the
following day, or in excess of 55 dBA at all other
hours, measured at a distance from fifty (50) feet from the point of origin of
the noise; and
b)
In any commercial district, as defined by the Zoning
By-law, in excess of 65 dBA between the hours of 11:00
p.m. and 7:00 a.m. the following day, or in excess of 80 dBA
at all other hours, measured at a distance from fifty (50) from the point of
origin of the noise.
13-2-6-2. Noise caused or suffered by persons
on premises. No person present in or about any building,
dwelling, premises (including public places and property), shelter, mobile or
stationary vehicle, boat or conveyance (or any part thereof), other than that
section of any establishment licensed under G.L. c.138, shall cause, suffer, or
countenance any loud, unnecessary, excessive, or unusual noise, regardless of
its nature, source, or manner of production or reproduction, including
but not limited to amplification devices or similar equipment, which causes or results in a noise level
measured as follows:
a) In any residential district, as defined by
the Zoning By-law , in excess of 45 dBA
between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. the following day, or in excess
of 55 dBA at all other hours, measured at a distance
from fifty (50) feet from the point of origin of the noise; and
b) In
any commercial district, as defined by the Zoning By-law, in excess of 70 dBA between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. the
following day, or in excess of 80 dBa at all other
hours, measured at a distance from fifty (50) from the point of origin of the
noise.
13-2-6-3.
Construction and manufacturing activities. No person shall operate or
permit the operation of any tools or equipment in construction, drilling,
blasting, mining, manufacturing or demolition work, or in preventive
maintenance work for public service utilities between the hours of
13-2-6-4. Domestic
Power Tools. No person shall operate or permit the
operation of any saw, drill, sander, grinder, lawn or garden tool, lawn mower,
or similar device used outdoors in residential areas between the hours of
13-2-6-5. Penalty. A non-criminal disposition penalty will
be assessed of fifty ($50) dollars to the owner, sponsor and/or responsible
party for each offense under sections 13-2-6-1 through 13-2-6-4, above.
13-2-6-6. In
addition to the non-criminal disposition penalty stated above, any 'stationary
vehicle' or 'vessel' which violates 13-2-6-2 for a period of sixty (60) minutes
or more, or whose vehicle is determined to be malfunctioning by an officer of
the Provincetown Police Department, shall have said vehicle or vessel removed
to a location where the source of the noise can be extinguished. The cost
of removal and extinguishing of the source of the offending noise shall be paid
by the owner or claimant of the offending vehicle.
13-2-6-7.
Waiver. The
Licensing Board may waive any part of this Noise Control bylaw for a temporary
licensed public event if, in the judgment and discretion of the Licensing
Board, the noise that the event will create in excess of the noise level limits
established under the Noise Control bylaw is offset by the benefits of the
event to the participants or the public and the noise of the event will not
cause undue hardship or disturbance to the surrounding area. Events covered by this bylaw will not extend
beyond
13-2-6-8. Disturbing The Peace/Nuisances. Nothing
herein shall be construed as permitting conduct that would otherwise constitute
a disturbance of the peace under G.L. c. 269, §1, G.L. c. 272, §53, or other
applicable provision of state law.
Nothing herein shall be construed as permitting conduct that would
otherwise violate the provisions of General By-laws Section
13-2-6-9. Exemptions. The following are exempted from
the provisions of Section
1. Noise from law enforcement motor
vehicles;
2. Noise from emergency vehicles or
emergency equipment which is audible during an actual emergency;
3. Noise
from Town-sponsored events or activities;
4. Nonamplified
crowd noises resulting from organized activities such as at school sporting
events; and
5. Ferry whistles.
13-2-6-10. Severability. If any provision or subsection of this Section shall be held to be invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, then such provision or subsection shall be considered separately and apart from the remaining provisions or subsections of this section, which shall remain in full force and effect.
Or to take any other action relative thereto.
[Requested by the Board of Selectmen and the Town Manager]