[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Woodbury 8-12-2008 by L.L. No. 6-2008. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
The Village Board finds that unreasonable noises,
as that term is defined herein, degrade the environment of the Village
to a degree which is harmful and detrimental to the public health,
safety and welfare of its inhabitants. Such noises interfere with
the comfortable enjoyment of life, property and recreation and with
the conduct and operation of business and industry. No one has the
right to create unreasonable noises, as defined herein. Effective
control and elimination of unreasonable noises is essential to the
furtherance of the public health, safety and welfare of the Village's
inhabitants and to the conduct of the normal pursuits of life, recreation,
commerce and industrial activity.
For the purpose of this chapter, the terms used
herein are defined as follows:
The all-encompassing noise associated with a given environment,
being usually a composite of sounds.
Any ambulance or vehicle operated by a police department,
chief or assistant police chief, fire department, fire patrol, chief
or assistant fire chief when engaged in the performance of duty.
Any or all activity necessary or incidental to the erection,
demolition, assembling, altering, installing or equipping of buildings,
public or private highways, roads, premises, parks, utility lines,
including such lines in already constructed property, including land
clearing, grading, excavating and filling.
Any device designed and intended for use in construction,
including, but not limited to, any air compressor, pile driver, bulldozer,
pneumatic hammer, steam shovel, derrick, crane, steam or electric
hoist.
Any material, regardless of composition or design, and customarily
used in construction, including, but not limited to, any rails, pillars,
columns, beams, bricks, flooring, wall, ceiling or roofing material,
gravel, sand, cement or asphalt.
A standard unit of acoustic measurement having a zero-reference
of 0.0002 microbar.
The criteria established in the noise rating curves of the
International Standards Organization.
The range of sound frequencies divided into octaves in order
to classify sound according to pitch.
Any individual, partnership, company, corporation, association,
firm, organization, government agency, administration or department,
or any other group of individuals, or any officer or employee thereof.
Any street, sidewalk or alley or similar place which is owned,
controlled or leased by the Village.
Any real property or structure thereon which is owned, controlled
or leased by the Village.
An oscillation in pressure, stress, particle displacement,
particle velocity, etc., in a medium with internal forces, or the
superposition of such propagated oscillation which evokes an auditory
sensation.
An instrument, including a microphone, amplifier, an output
meter, and frequency weighting networks for the measurement of noise
and sound levels in a specific manner and which complies with standards
established by the American National Standards Institute.
The Village of Woodbury, Orange County, New York.
It shall be unlawful for any person to make, continue, cause to be made or permit to be made any unreasonable noise within the Village of Woodbury. The determination as to the existence of unreasonable noise may be established by the specific acts considered to be unreasonable noise enumerated within § 208-4 or by the measurements exceeding the limitation set forth in § 208-5.
A.
The use of any sound-reproduction device or musical
instrument outside a structure either on private property or on a
public right-of-way or public space at any time within the Village
which, by causing noise, annoys or disturbs the quiet, comfort or
repose of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities. This provision
shall not be construed to prohibit public performances being conducted
in accordance with a special permit granted by the Village.
B.
The use of any sound-reproduction device or musical
instrument inside a structure in such a manner as to result in the
sound or any part thereof from such apparatus to be projected therefrom
outside of the structure or out of doors at any time whereby the sound
can be audibly heard more than 100 feet from the real property boundary
line from which the noise emanates which would annoy or disturb the
quiet, comfort or repose of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities.
C.
The use of any sound-reproduction device or musical
instrument within 500 feet of any school, church, hospital, clinic
or courthouse while the same is in session or conducting business
therein so as to interfere with the functions of such activities.
D.
The use of any automobile, motorcycle, trail bike,
minibike, snowmobile, bus, vehicle, boat, truck, all-terrain vehicle,
motor-driven equipment or motor-driven vehicle, or other type of water-
or seagoing vessel in such a manner as to create noise which would
annoy or disturb a reasonable person with normal sensitivities or
if it injures or endangers the comfort, repose, health, hearing, peace
or safety of another person.
E.
The sounding of any horn or signal device on any automobile,
motorcycle, bus, streetcar or other vehicle, except as a warning signal
pursuant to the provisions of § 375 of the Vehicle and Traffic
Law of the State of New York, except by use of an authorized emergency
vehicle.
[Amended 7-28-2009 by L.L. No. 4-2009]
F.
No power braking, i.e., downshifting to reduce speed
without using brakes resulting in unnecessary noise.
G.
The keeping or maintaining of any animal or animals
or bird which, by causing frequent or long-continued noise, including
loud howling, barking, crying or whining, with or without the knowledge,
consent, or fault of the owner of the animal or bird, shall disturb
the comfort and repose of any person in the immediate vicinity, for
a continuous period of 15 or more minutes or intermittent noise for
a period of 45 minutes or more in a residential area.
H.
Yelling, shouting, hooting, on or open to the public
space or public right-of-way, that either annoys or disturbs a reasonable
person with normal sensitivities or if it injures or endangers the
comfort, repose, health, hearing, peace or safety of another person.
I.
Construction activity:
(1)
Except as provided for in this section, no person
shall engage in the erection, construction (including excavating),
grading, dredging or pneumatic hammering, demolition, alteration or
repair of any building or structure other than on weekdays between
the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. or on Saturdays, Sundays or holidays
between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
(2)
Any person desiring to engage in the aforesaid activity
beyond the stated hours of limitation, based upon cases of urgent
necessity or upon the interests of public health, safety and convenience,
may apply to the Building Department for a special permit allowing
such activity. The permits, if granted, shall be limited to a period
of up to three days' duration but may be renewed for additional periods
of up to three days each if the emergency or need continues.
J.
Construction devices. No person shall operate or use or cause to be operated or used a construction device in such a way as to create an unreasonable noise as defined in § 208-5.
K.
No person shall operate or use or cause to be operated
any lawn maintenance device, including mowers, blowers, edgers, trimmers,
chain saws and power-driven equipment, other than on weekdays between
the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. or sunset, whichever occurs later,
or Saturdays, Sundays and holidays between the hours of 10:00 a.m.
and 7:00 p.m.
A.
The subject noise must exceed ambient noise by five
decibels or more in any octave band to be declared excessive or unreasonable.
Ambient noise levels are herein described for the following zoning
districts:
|
District
|
Noise Level 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
|
Noise Level 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
| |
|---|---|---|---|
|
R-3A, R-2A, R-1A, R-0.25A, CR
|
65 dBA
|
55 dBA
| |
|
LC, HB
|
75 dBA
|
65 dBA
| |
|
IB, LIO, OP
|
80 dBA
|
70 dBA
|
B.
Sound projecting from one zoning district into another
zoning district having a lower noise-level limit shall not exceed
the limits of the district into which it is projected.
C.
When instrumentation cannot be placed at the emanating
site, all noise measurements shall be made at the property line of
the impacted site.
A.
Noise measurements shall be made with a sound-level
meter and/or compatible octave band analyzer manufactured according
to the specification of the American National Standards Institute,
USA Standard Specification for General Purpose Sound Level Meters
and Preferred Center Frequencies for Acoustical Measurements or any
subsequent nationally adopted standard superseding the above standards.
B.
Except where impractical, sound measurements shall
be made from the specific position of the complainant at the premises
from which the noise complaints are received and shall be made at
a height of at least three feet above the ground and three feet from
the walls, barriers, obstructions or other sound-reflective surfaces.
Where the nature of the noise permits, the slow response setting shall
be used to obtain the noise level on the sound-level meter. The sound
analysis curve shall be plotted in decibels upon the noise-rating
chart, and the highest portion of the curve in any octave band above
a noise-rating curve shall be the noise-rating number for the measurement.
The average curve of several noise measurements may be used to plot
the sound analysis curve.
C.
When detailed sound analysis measurement cannot be
made, a measurement of the noise using the A scale of a standard sound-level
meter may be made, and the noise-rating number shall be determined
by this measurement minus eight decibels.
Anyone who believes this chapter has been violated
may contact the Building Department, Code Enforcement Officer, the
Town of Woodbury Police Department or any other official designated
by the Village Board to institute an appropriate action in the Town
of Woodbury Justice Court for the enforcement of this chapter and
to request appropriate penalties for any alleged violation of the
same.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter
shall be deemed guilty of an offense and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $500 for each first
offense. Repeated violations shall be fined not less than $100 nor
more than $5,000 or may be imprisoned for not more than 30 days, or
both, for each subsequent offense.
