[Ord. No. 599, 12/19/1983]
Disorderly conduct is hereby prohibited within the Borough of
Stroudsburg. A person is guilty of disorderly conduct if, with intent
to cause public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm, or recklessly creating
a risk thereof, he:
1. Engages in fighting or in threatening, violent or tumultuous behavior;
2. Makes unreasonable noise;
3. Uses obscene language, or makes an obscene gesture; or
4. Creates a hazardous or physically offensive condition by any act
which serves no legitimate purpose of the actor, provided that, as
used in this section, the word "public" means affecting or likely
to affect persons in a place to which the public or a substantial
group has access. Among the places included are streets, alleys and
sidewalks, transport facilities, schools, prisons, apartment houses,
places of business or amusement, any neighborhood, or any premises
which are open to the public.
[Amended by Ord. No. 1132, 7/19/2022]
[Ord. No. 599, 12/19/1983; as amended by Ord. No. 1132, 7/19/2022]
Any person, firm, or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this Part, or fails to comply therewith, or with any of the requirements
thereof, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before a Magisterial
District Judge in the manner provided for the enforcement of summary
offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, shall
be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000
plus costs, including reasonable attorney's fees incurred by
the Borough, and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to
a term of imprisonment to the extent permitted by law for the punishment
of summary offenses. A separate offense shall arise for each day or
portion thereof in which a violation of this Part is found to exist
and for each section of this Part found to have been violated. The
Borough may also commence appropriate actions in equity to prevent,
restrain, correct, enjoin, or abate violations of this Part. The initial
determination of an ordinance violation is hereby delegated to the
Borough Manager, the Police Department, the Code Official, the authorized
designee of the Borough Manager, and to any other officer or agent
that the Borough Manager or Borough Council shall deem appropriate.
[Added by Ord. No. 1132, 7/19/2022]
1. It is hereby declared to be a nuisance and it shall be unlawful for
any person, firm, or corporation to make or cause or suffer or permit
to be made or caused, upon any premises owned, occupied, or controlled
by him or her or it, or upon any public street, alley, or thoroughfare
in the Borough of Stroudsburg, any unnecessary noises or sounds by
means of the human voice or by any other means or methods which are
physically annoying to the comfort of any person or which are so harsh
or so prolonged or unnatural or unusual in their use, time, and place
as to occasion physical discomfort or which are injurious to the lives,
health, peace, and comfort of the inhabitants of said Borough or any
member thereof.
2. Sound-Producing Devices. No person, persons, firm, or corporation
shall play, use, or operate, or knowingly permit to be played, used,
or operated, any radio receiver, musical instrument, phonograph, sound
amplifier, loudspeaker, or other machine or device for the reproduction
of sound upon property (real or personal) or premises owned, occupied,
or used by him, them, or it which is not measured and regulated by
decibels so that the sound coming from such machine can be audibly
heard at a distance greater than 100 feet from the property or premises
wherein such machine or device is located. Nothing herein contained
shall be construed to prohibit the playing of a band or orchestra
in any concert hall, auditorium, or public park, or the utilization
of such sound-producing devices by charitable or nonprofit groups
for the general purpose of public announcements or public events.
3. Sound Trucks and Loudspeakers.
A. No person shall operate a sound truck or loudspeaker on the streets
or public places of the Borough of Stroudsburg without first obtaining
a permit therefor from the designated Borough official. Such permit
shall not be transferable from person to person or from sound truck
to sound truck and may not be extended as to the date(s) it shall
be used, nor shall any permit for the operation of such sound truck
be issued for use earlier than 8:00 a.m. or later than 10:00 p.m.
of the prevailing local time. Every application for a permit shall
be accompanied by a permit fee as determined by Stroudsburg Borough
Council pursuant to resolution, and no such permit shall be issued
until the prescribed fee shall have been paid.
B. The application for such permit shall be filed with the Borough,
and the permit issued shall be limited in accordance with the information
contained in such application, which shall set forth the following:
(1)
The name and home address of the applicant.
(2)
The business address of the applicant.
(3)
The name and address of the owner of the sound truck.
(4)
The make and license number of the sound truck.
(5)
The name and address of the person operating the sound truck.
(6)
The name and address of the person operating the sound equipment.
(7)
The purpose for which the sound truck will be used.
(8)
The proposed hours of operation of the sound truck.
(9)
A statement from the applicant agreeing that the sound coming
from sound equipment shall not be audibly heard at a distance greater
than 100 feet from the sound truck or amplifying device.
C. After the issuance of said permit, the designated Borough official
shall return one certified copy of the application to the permittee,
together with the permit, which must be in the possession of the operator
of the sound truck during such time as the sound-amplifying equipment
is in operation. Such certified application and permit shall, upon
request, be promptly exhibited to any Stroudsburg Borough Zoning Officer
or municipal police officer.
D. Sound equipment shall not be permitted to attract the attention of
motorists or pedestrians, causing the blocking of streets and thereby
creating traffic congestion and hazard.
4. Horns. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation
to sound any horn or warning device on any automobile, motorcycle,
bus, or other vehicle except when required by law or to give timely
warning of impending danger to persons driving other vehicles or to
persons upon the street. No person shall sound any horn or warning
device on any automobile, motorcycle, bus, or other vehicle which
shall emit an unreasonably loud or harsh sound or for any unnecessary
or unreasonable period of time.
5. Construction. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation
to engage in any exterior construction, including erection, repair,
alteration, renovation, demolition, or removal of any building or
structure and the excavation, filling, or grading in connection therewith,
before 7:00 a.m. and after 8:00 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and
before 9:00 a.m. and after 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, and all day on federal
holidays for which there is no U.S. postal service, or as specified
by resolution of Stroudsburg Borough Council. Construction sites are
not permitted to accept deliveries, permit pickups, load, unload,
or warm up equipment before or after permitted hours. Exceptions to
the permitted days and hours may be granted, in writing, by the Borough
Manager or his designee, who may require conditions of approval, including
but not limited to noise mitigation and additional time constraints.
This section shall not apply to work performed by the Department of
Public Works or necessary repairs conducted immediately following
severe weather events, other natural disasters, or an emergency declared
by the Mayor.
6. Violations and Penalties. Any person, firm, or corporation who shall
violate any provision of this section, or fails to comply therewith,
or with any of the requirements thereof, upon conviction thereof in
an action brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the manner
provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania
Rules of Criminal Procedure, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not
less than $100 nor more than $1,000 plus costs, including reasonable
attorney's fees incurred by the Borough, and, in default of payment
of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment to the extent permitted
by law for the punishment of summary offenses. A separate offense
shall arise for each day or portion thereof in which a violation of
this section is found to exist and for each subsection of this section
found to have been violated. The Borough may also commence appropriate
actions in equity to prevent, restrain, correct, enjoin, or abate
violations of this section. The initial determination of ordinance
violation is hereby delegated to the Borough Manager, the Police Department,
the Code Official, the authorized designee of the Borough Manager,
and to any other officer or agent that the Borough Manager or Borough
Council shall deem appropriate.