[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Cayuga Heights 8-13-2012 by L.L. No. 5-2012. Amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose and intent of this chapter is to preserve the public
health, peace, comfort, repose, welfare, safety and good order by
suppressing the making, creation or maintenance of excessive, unnecessary,
unnatural, or unusually loud noises which are prolonged, unusual or
unnatural in their time, place and use or which are detrimental to
the environment.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Village
of Cayuga Heights Noise Law."
When used in this chapter, the following words and phrases will
have the following meanings:
A person who is at least 16 years old.
The hours beginning at 7:00 a.m. local time on any day and
ending at 9:00 p.m. local time.
Work made necessary to restore property to a safe condition
following a public calamity, or work necessary to protect persons
or property from an imminent exposure danger.
A sound lasting of a short duration, usually less than one
second, and of high intensity with an abrupt onset and rapid decay.
Includes, but is not limited to, automobiles, trucks, buses,
motorcycles, mopeds, mini-bikes and any other vehicle as defined by
the Vehicle and Traffic Law of the State of New York, as it may be
amended from time to time.
The hours beginning at 9:00 p.m. local time on any day and
ending at 7:00 a.m. local time on the following day.
Includes the singular and plural and also any individual,
any property owner and/or lessee, any firm, corporation, political
subdivision, government agency, association or organization, including,
but not limited to, officers, directors, employees, agents and/or
independent contractors thereof, or any legal entity.
Any portion of the Village located within either the Village's Residential District or Multiple Housing District as defined in Chapter 305, Zoning, of the Village of Cayuga Heights Code. "Residential Zone" also includes any special land use district or planned development zone defined by such ordinance wherein one of the principal land users is residential. If the Zoning Ordinance is amended or replaced and as a result additional zoning districts are added or denominated differently, the term "Residential Zone" as used in this chapter shall mean those zoning districts in which the predominant intended land use is residential.
Any machine or device used for the amplification of the human
voice, instrumental music or any other sound. Sound-amplifying equipment
shall not include standard automobile sound systems when used and
heard only by the occupants of the motor vehicle in which such automobile
sound system is installed. As used in this chapter, sound-amplifying
equipment shall not include warning devices on authorized emergency
vehicles or horns or other warning devices on any vehicle used only
for traffic safety purposes, or authorized fire horns or other authorized
emergency alarms.
Any excessive or unusually loud sound which either annoys,
disturbs, injures or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace
or safety of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities, or which
causes injury to animal life or damages to property or business.
All the geographical area that is within the corporate limits
of the Village of Cayuga Heights.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
No person shall intentionally cause public inconvenience, annoyance,
or alarm, or recklessly create a risk thereof, by making unreasonable
noise or by causing unreasonable noise to be made.
A.
For the purpose of implementing and enforcing the standard set forth
in this section, factors to be considered in determining whether unreasonable
noise exists in a given situation include, but are not limited to,
any or all of the following:
(1)
The intensity of the noise.
(2)
The duration of the noise.
(3)
The intensity of the background noise, if any.
(4)
The zoning district within which the noise emanates and all zoning
districts that lie within 500 feet of the source of the sound.
(5)
The time of the day or night the noise occurs.
(6)
The proximity of the noise to sleeping facilities.
(7)
Whether the noise is continuous or impulsive.
(8)
The existence of complaints concerning the noise from one or more
persons who are affected by the noise.
(9)
Whether the nature of the noise is usual or unusual.
(10)
Whether the noise is due to a natural or human-made activity.
The provisions of § 166-4 shall be employed to complement and supplement the other provisions of this chapter and shall be interpreted and applied in accordance with and in addition to, and not in lieu of, those other provisions.
A.
Radios, television sets, computers and other sound-producing or -amplifying
devices.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person within any Residential Zone,
or within 500 feet of a Residential Zone, to use or to operate any
radio or receiving set, musical instrument (including drums), phonograph,
television set, computer or any other machine or device for the producing
or reproducing of sound or any other sound-amplifying equipment in
a loud, annoying or offensive manner such that noise form the device
interferes with the comfort, repose, health or safety of members of
the public or recklessly creates a risk thereof, within any building
or, outside of a building, at a distance of 25 feet or more from the
source of such sound or interferes with the conversation of members
of the public who are 25 feet or more from the source of such sound.
(2)
For the purposes of this Subsection A, the term "person" will more specifically mean:
(a)
For an offense that occurs on any public property where permission
was obtained to use that public property, a "person" shall include
the person or persons who obtained permission to utilize that property
for that event.
(b)
For an offense that occurs on private property, a "person" shall
include any adult person or persons who live in or on the property
that is involved in the offense.
B.
Security, fire and any other sound producing alarm system.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person within any Residential Zone,
or within 500 feet of a Residential Zone, to have their security,
fire, or any other type of alarm system equipped with sound-amplifying
equipment capable of producing a loud, annoying or offensive noise
repeatedly create such noise in a manner that interferes with the
comfort, repose, health or safety of members of the public or recklessly
creates a risk thereof, within any building or, outside of a building,
at a distance of 25 feet or more from the source of such sound or
interferes with the conversation of members of the public who are
25 feet or more from the source of such sound.
(2)
For the purpose of this Subsection B, the term "repeatedly" shall mean more than two times within an eight-consecutive-hour time period. It will be considered a new offense if the alarm repeatedly produces noise again after the first notification to the Village Police Department.
(3)
For the purpose of this Subsection B, the term "person" will more specifically mean:
(a)
For an offense that occurs on any public property where permission
was obtained to use that public property, a "person" shall include
the person or persons who obtained permission to utilize that property
for that event.
(b)
For an offense that occurs on private property, a "person" shall
include any adult person or persons who live in or on the property
that is involved in the offense.
C.
Construction and other machinery.
(1)
During nighttime hours, it shall be unlawful for any person within
a Residential Zone, or within 500 feet of a Residential Zone, to operate
or cause to be operated any pile driver, steam shovel, pneumatic hammer,
derrick, steam or electric hoist, electric or pneumatic drill, front-loaded
garbage collection vehicles performing commercial pickups, or other
commercial industrial equipment, except to perform emergency work.
(2)
If any domestic power or hand tool, including, but not limited to,
mechanically powered saws, sanders, grinders, and lawn and garden
tools, is operated during nighttime hours, no person shall operate
such machinery so as to cause noise within a residential building
or across a residential real property boundary where such noise interferes
with the comfort, repose, health or safety of members of the public
within any building or, outside of a building, at 25 feet or more
from the source of the sound. Side- and rear-loaded garbage collection
vehicles, and garbage collection vehicles that do not have compactors,
may be operated for residential pickup beginning at 6:00 a.m. local
time as long as they do not create noise within a residential building
or across a residential real property boundary where such noise interferes
with the comfort, repose, health or safety of members of the public
within any building or, outside of a building, at 25 feet or more
from the source of the sound.
D.
Parties and other social or fund-raising events or gatherings.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person in charge of a party or other
social or fund-raising event or gathering that occurs on any private
or public property to allow that event to produce noise in a loud,
annoying or offensive manner, or recklessly create the risk thereof,
such that noise from the event interferes with the comfort, repose,
health or safety of members of the public within any building or,
outside of a building, at a distance of 25 feet or more from the source
of such sound. It shall also be unlawful for any participant in that
event to contribute to such noise.
(2)
For the purposes of this section, a "person in charge of a party
or other social or fund-raising event or gathering":
(a)
That occurs on any public property shall include the person
or persons who obtained permission to utilize that property for that
event.
(b)
That occurs on private property shall include the person who
owns the premises involved and any adult person who lives in or on
the premises involved in such party or social event.
E.
Mufflers. It shall be unlawful for any person to discharge into the
open air the exhaust of any steam engine, stationary internal-combustion
engine, air-compressor equipment, motor vehicle or other power device,
which is not equipped with an adequate muffler in constant operation
and properly maintained to prevent any unreasonable noise or noise
disturbance, and no such muffler or exhaust system shall be modified
or used with a cutoff, bypass or similar device which causes said
engines, vehicles or other power devices to create an unreasonable
noise.
F.
Shouting. It shall be unlawful for any person to shout, yell, call,
hoot, whistle or sing on public streets or in public places, in such
a manner or for such a period of time, as to be unreasonable under
the circumstances.
A.
Enforcement of violations. Enforcement may be facilitated by, but
shall not be dependent upon, complaint by a resident of the Village
to the Village Code Enforcement Officer or Village Police Officer,
or any other law enforcement officer. Any police officer or peace
officer or any person who may be lawfully designated by the Village
Board shall have the authority to issue appearance tickets in connection
with any violation in this chapter.
B.
Penalties for violations.
(1)
A violation of this chapter is hereby declared to be a violation,
with conviction of a first offense punishable by a minimum fine of
$50 and not to exceed a fine of $250 or imprisonment not to exceed
15 days, or both. For conviction of a second or subsequent offense
which was committed within a period of five years from the commission
of the prior offense, a violator shall be subject to a minimum fine
of $100 and not to exceed $250 or imprisonment not to exceed 15 days,
or both. With respect to continuous emissions of sound, each day of
such emission shall constitute a separate violation.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
(2)
In addition, persons who violate this chapter may be liable for a
civil penalty of $500 for a first violation and $1,000 for a second
or subsequent violation which was committed within a period of five
years from the commission of the prior violation. With respect to
continuous emissions of sound, each day of such emission may constitute
a separate violation. The Attorney for the Village or his or her designee
may commence an action or special proceeding against the violator
in a court of competent jurisdiction to collect these penalties, together
with costs, disbursements and recoverable attorneys' fees, and/or
to compel compliance with this chapter or restrain by injunction any
such violation.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
(3)
Each such act which either continues or is repeated more than 1/2
hour after issuance of a written notice of violation of this chapter
shall be a separate offense and shall be prosecuted as such.
C.
Liability of owner. The owner of any real property (except public
highways, and other publicly owned facilities) from which property
sounds prohibited by this chapter emanate shall be guilty of a violation
of this chapter, whether or not such owner was on the premises or
occupied the premises when the proscribed sounds emanated from the
same.
