[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of the City of Glens Falls 8-9-2001 by L.L. No. 1-2001. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter is entitled "City of Glens Falls Noise Control Law."
A. 
The City of Glens Falls is a geographically small community located in Warren County, New York, between the Town of Queensbury to the north and the Village of South Glens Falls to the south. The City contains a large business and commercial area, including residential uses.
B. 
The Common Council of the City of Glens Falls recognizes the need to reasonably regulate noise generated within the City of Glens Falls, but to do so in a manner that balances the legitimate interests of various segments of the community, including private residential uses as well as a variety of business and commercial uses.
C. 
It is hereby declared to be the policy of the City of Glens Falls to control excessive, unnecessary, unreasonable or unusually loud noise generated by refuse compacting vehicles and/or vehicles. This chapter is intended to preserve, protect and promote the public health, safety, welfare, peace and repose of the people of the City of Glens Falls. It is the policy of the City of Glens Falls that automobile traffic and solid waste collection within the City may not be conducted in a manner that detrimentally affects the reasonable use and enjoyment of the residents of the City of Glens Falls and that excessive, unnecessary, unreasonable or unusually loud noise resulting from such operation has a detrimental effect, especially between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
[Amended 11-28-2023 by L.L. No. 4-2023]
For the purposes of this chapter, the terms used herein are defined as follows:
ACTIVITY
Any act or combination of acts which causes the production of sound.
AMBIENT SOUND LEVEL
All sound sources in the area.
ANSI
American National Standards Institute or its successor bodies.
AUDIO DEVICE
A machine capable of playing, reproducing and/or amplifying speech, including but not limited to a radio, tape player or compact disc player.
A-WEIGHTED SOUND LEVEL
The frequency-weighted sound pressure level (in decibels) measured on a sound-level meter with an A-weighted scale as specified in the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) specifications for solid-level meters (ANSI No. 4-1971).
dB(A)
The abbreviation for A-weighted sound level in decibels.
DECIBEL
A unit for measuring the volume of sound equal to 20 times the logarithm to the base of 10 of the ratio of the pressure of the sound measured to the reference pressure which is 20 micropascals (20 micronewtons per square meter).
LEVEL
The logarithm of the ratio of a quantity to a reference of the same kind. The base of the logarithm is 10.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, company, public or private corporation, association, firm, organization, political subdivision, governmental agency, administration or department, municipality, trust, estate, group of individuals or any other legal entity.
REAL PROPERTY BOUNDARY
Any imaginary line exterior to any structure, along the ground surface, which separates the real property owned by one person from that owned by another person, and the vertical extension of such line.
REFUSE-COMPACTING VEHICLE
Any vehicle which is either designed to be used or is used to compact and/or transfer refuse, garbage or trash.
SENSITIVE RECEPTOR
Any occupied property or, if a condominium, apartment house, duplex or attached business, within any adjoining unit; or place of business which is affected adversely by noise.
SOUND LEVEL
The quantity in decibels measured by a sound-level meter satisfying the requirements of American National Specification for Sound-Level Meters S1.4 -- 1971. This publication is available from the American National Standards Institute, Inc., 1430 Broadway, New York, New York 10018. Sound level is the frequency-weighted sound-pressure level obtained with the standardized dynamic characteristic fast or slow and weighting A, B and C; unless indicated otherwise, the A-weighting with a slow response is understood.
SOUND-LEVEL METER
An instrument, including a microphone, an amplifier, an output meter and frequent-weighing network for the measurement of sound levels. Sound-level meters shall conform to the requirements of ANSI specifications for sound-level meters S1.4-1971, Types 1, 2, S1 or S2a.
SOUND-PRESSURE LEVEL
Twenty times the logarithm to the base 10 of the ratio of the root mean squared pressure of a sound to a reference pressure of 20 micropascals. The unit applied to this measure shall be the decibel (dB).
VEHICLE
The term "vehicle" shall have that meaning ascribed to such term in § 159 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law, as the same may be modified and amended, or replaced, provided, however that "vehicle" shall not include any authorized emergency vehicle or any vehicle owned or controlled by the City of Glens Falls and operated for the benefit of the City; such vehicle owned by the City of Glens Falls includes, but is not limited to, any vehicle engaged in snow removal.
Any act in violation of any of the provisions of this local law is deemed to be in violation of this chapter.
Nothing in this chapter shall restrict any right which any person may have under any statute, including but not limited to Environmental Conservation Law, Vehicle and Traffic Law, Labor Law and the Industrial Code, or common law, to seek enforcement of any noise-control requirement or to seek any other relief.
If any provisions of this chapter are held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions which can be given effect without the invalid provisions.
It shall be prima facie evidence that an activity is in violation of this chapter when a sound-level meter determines that the decibel level of a particular activity is in excess of the standards hereinafter set forth.. All measurements will be made on the A-2 weighted sound level of a Type 0, 1 or 2 sound-level meter with a slow response.
[Amended 11-28-2023 by L.L. No. 4-2023]
The following noise shall be prohibited:
A. 
Refuse compacting.
(1) 
Commercial. The operation of a refuse-compacting vehicle in the process of compacting or collecting refuse contained in a dumpster or similar receptacle between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.; or
(2) 
Residential. The operation of a refuse-compacting vehicle in the process of compacting or collecting refuse contained in individual garbage cans between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
B. 
Between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., noise should be below 75 dB as measured from property boundary or public right-of-way, excluding; sirens, alarms and emergency repair work or other matters related to public safety or events otherwise permitted by the Common Council.
C. 
Between the hours of 7:00 am to 10:00 p.m.: public disturbance noises such as loud, raucous, frequent, repetitive, or continuous noise clearly heard by someone at a distance of 75 feet or more or heard clearly inside an adjacent building in excess of four hours over any twenty-four-hour period, excluding noise associated with routine property maintenance or permitted construction.
A. 
No person shall operate, play or permit the operation or playing of any radio, stereo, sound amplifier, audio device or similar device from any parked vehicle or vehicle which remains stationary for at least five minutes, at sound levels which may be heard at a distance of 150 feet away from the vehicle.
B. 
No person may operate, play or permit the operation or playing of any radio, stereo, sound amplifier, audio device or similar device from a stationary vehicle.
A. 
No person may operate an audio device from any parked motor vehicle or motor vehicle which remains stationary for at least five minutes at sound levels which may be heard at a distance of 150 feet away from the motor vehicle.
B. 
No person may operate, play or permit the operation or playing of any radio, stereo, sound amplifier audio device or similar device from a stationary vehicle or from a moving vehicle which produces, reproduces or amplifies sound in a manner which rises the ambient sound level within the nearest sensitive receptor (measured at the nearest real property boundary line from the street in cases of a moving vehicle or stationary vehicle located on a street or measured at the nearest real property boundary line adjacent to the parcel of real property on which any parked vehicle is located) to a level which exceeds:
(1) 
Fifty dB(A) between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
(2) 
Fifty-five dB(A) between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.
C. 
For purposes of Subsection B, the ambient sound level for a moving vehicle may be determined, but shall not be required to be determined, by causing the vehicle to remain stationary and without adjusting any radio, stereo, sound amplifier or similar device measuring the ambient sound level produced from the stationary vehicle.
[Added 11-28-2023 by L.L. No. 4-2023[1]]
This chapter shall not apply to the operation or use of any organ, radio, bell, chime or other instrument, apparatus or device by any church, synagogue, school or government officer or employer in the course of official duty or to properly functional emergency and safety alarms sounding off for the protection of public health, safety and welfare, nor for any events that have been explicitly approved by the Common Council.
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law also renumbered former §§ 45-11 and 45-12 as §§ 45-12 and 45-13, respectively.
Any person found guilty of violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation and, upon conviction, shall be punishable by a fine of $250 for the first violation and $500 for each violation thereafter or by imprisonment for not more than one month, or both. Each occurrence in contravention of the provisions of this chapter constitutes a separate violation.
This chapter shall take effect upon filing in the office of the Secretary of State of the State of New York, as provided in § 27 of the Municipal Home Rule Law.
[Added 11-28-2023 by L.L. No. 4-2023]
A. 
It shall be the duty of the Glens Falls Police Department to enforce the provisions of this chapter.
B. 
If a violation of this chapter shall occur in the presence of a Glens Falls police officer, they shall issue an appearance ticket, as set forth in §§ 150.10 to 150.75 of the New York State Criminal Procedure Law, based upon witnessing the incident or upon a written statement by the complainant.