This chapter shall be known and may be cited
as the "Noise Control Law of the Village of New Hyde Park" or, in
abbreviated form, as the "NCL-NHP."
The Board of Trustees finds the emission of
any loud, disturbing, excessive or unreasonable noise to be an unnecessary
environmental hazard, one demonstrably detrimental to individual human
life and health and therefore contrary to the public good and welfare.
Accordingly, it is the policy of the Board and the purpose and intent
of this chapter to impose strict regulatory standards for control
of noise emissions within the Village and to prevent and prohibit
the generation of noise which, by reason of its character, intensity
and duration or due to the time and place of its dispersal into the
surrounding environment, would seriously threaten the rightful life,
health, comfort and repose of nearby persons; would unreasonably interfere
with the lawful use and peaceful enjoyment of neighboring property
or facilities; or would unduly disrupt and diminish the public peace,
order, safety or welfare of the general community.
For the purpose of this chapter, the words,
term and phrases used herein are defined as follows:
AMBIENT SOUND
The average level of undifferentiated background sound perceived
in an area at any given time, exclusive of any distinguishable extraneous
sounds or noises. Statistically, the long-term residual "ambient sound"
level for an area is expressed as the L90 value, i.e., the level that
is exceeded 90% of the time.
ANSI
The American National Standards Institute or its generally
recognized functional successor.
COMMERCIAL OPERATION
Any lawful business or commercial activity involving the
promotion, sale or utilization of goods or services, including but
not limited to the operation of commercial dining establishments,
bars, lounges and taverns, motor vehicle service and repair shops
and recreational and entertainment facilities.
CONSTRUCTION
The conduct of any lawful activity involving or relating
to the erection, assembly, alteration, installation, demolition, equipping
or repair of buildings or structures and their accessory improvements,
including, for the purposes of this chapter, any clearing, excavating,
blasting, earthmoving, filling, grading or landscaping of land, necessary
or incidental to the foregoing activities, whenever and wherever carried
on in the Village.
CONTINUOUS SOUND
Any distinguishable sound having a timed duration of more
than two seconds.
DAYTIME
That portion of each day which falls between the hours of
7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., prevailing time.
DECIBEL (DB)
The logarithmic term used to express, in numerical units,
the relative level (the loudness) of sound-pressure intensity as perceived
by the human ear. The difference in "decibels" of two sounds is 10
times the common logarithm of the ratio of their power levels, so
that a doubling of any sound energy produces a rise of three dB and
a rise of 10 dB represents a sound energy increase of 10 times.
EMERGENCY
The actual or anticipated onset or the ongoing continuation
of any calamity or disaster, whether natural or man-made, which exposes
or would expose any person to immediate or imminent danger of death,
physical injury or other serious harm or which exposes or would expose
any property to immediate or imminent danger of damage, destruction
or other serious harm.
EMERGENCY OPERATION
The conduct of any activity reasonably required to respond
to or to actually handle any particular emergency, including the use
of authorized emergency warning devices, the deployment of emergency
response vehicles and personnel and the undertaking of emergency work,
whenever and wherever carried on.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE VEHICLE
Any ambulance, police, fire, rescue, civil defense or other
similar such vehicle, owned or operated by a federal, state or local
governmental agency or an authorized quasi-public entity, either designed
or intended for use or actually so used to respond to an emergency
or to carry out emergency work or operations.
EMERGENCY WARNING DEVICE
Any mobile or stationary sound-generating device or apparatus
that is designed to be used or is actually used to transmit audible
warning of an emergency or to give audible notice of the approach
of an oncoming emergency response vehicle.
EMERGENCY WORK
Any work or activity deemed necessary or prudent to prevent,
handle or recover from an emergency, including, for the purposes of
this chapter, any work engaged in to repair vital electric, gas, water,
sewer or telephone utility services.
GENERATING LAND
Any public or private land whereon the source of generation
and emission of a sound or sounds is permanently situated or temporarily
located.
IMPULSIVE SOUND
Any percussive- or impact-type sound lasting two seconds
or less which exceeds the ambient sound within an area by six dB or
more.
LOUDNESS
The intensity of sound as perceived by the average unaided
human ear, which is approximated by an A-weighted frequency response
(dBA) scale measurement made with a sound-level meter meeting the
requirements of this chapter.
MAXIMUM SOUND LEVEL
The noted maximum root mean square (r.m.s.) sound-pressure
level measured at a particular time and place using a sound-level
meter which meets the requirements of this chapter.
NIGHTTIME
That continuous period of time covering portions of any two
consecutive days, which falls between the hours of 9:00 p.m., prevailing
time, of the first day and 7:00 a.m., prevailing time, of the next
succeeding day.
NOISE
Any sound or combination of sounds which, due to its character,
intensity and duration or the time and place of its emission and perception,
is deemed to be so unpleasant, objectionable and disturbing as to
unduly disrupt or unreasonably interfere with the peace, comfort and
repose of any one or more persons.
OWNER OR OCCUPANT
Any person having a legal interest in real property or a
lessee, tenant, manager or agent of such person a mortgagee or receiver
in possession of such property; and/or any person deemed to be an
actual or presumptive lawful occupant of such property or any part
or portion of the same.
PERSON
Any natural person or any partnership, corporation, company,
firm, association or other legal entity whatsoever capable of suing
or being sued.
POINT-OF-COMPLAINT
That point on and along the property line(s) of generating
land or within an area or confined space located in or upon any adjoining
or neighboring receiving land at which sound or noise emissions from
the generating land are heard and alleged or measured and determined
to be in violation of any provision of this chapter.
PUBLIC PLACE
Any real property or any of the buildings, structures or
other improvements thereon, including any public area used or intended
for the parking or standing of any type of vehicle, which is owned
or leased by or under the control of a governmental entity or any
agency thereof.
PUBLIC RIGHT-OF-WAY
Any public street, road, highway, alley, sidewalk, path or
other public way used or intended for use by pedestrians, bicyclists
or motor vehicles.
RECEIVING LAND
Any public or private lands, including the buildings, structures,
facilities and open spaces situated thereon, whereon the sound or
sounds emitted from any generating land can be heard and detected
by any person and where, when implicitly or expressly required by
any provision of this chapter, the level of such sound(s) shall be
measured to determine whether it (or they) comply with or exceed any
limits or restriction imposed by this chapter.
RESPONSE
Refers to the time-sensitive response capacity of a sound-level
meter, generally designated as either slow or fast in conformance
with ANSI standards and specifications; the slow "response" generally
being more desirable for the measurement of continuous sounds, while
the fast "response" is more usually employed to measure sounds having
a short event, such as impulsive, explosive or impactive sounds.
SOUND-GENERATING DEVICE OR APPARATUS
Any machine, mechanism or equipment; any musical instrument;
any radio or tuner, amplifier, phonograph, CD or tape player, speaker
or similar electronic device or apparatus; or any other thing or device
either designed or intended or actually so used to produce, amplify
or reproduce any sound or sounds.
SOUND LEVEL
The sound-pressure level, in decibels, as measured and obtained
using a sound-level meter having an A-weighted frequency scale and
employing the appropriate slow or fast response.
SOUND-LEVEL METER
An instrument, designed and used to detect and measure sound-pressure
levels in their decibel equivalents and to display that information
in either analog or digital form, which meets or exceeds all ANSI
specifications or any other standards imposed or required by the provisions
of this chapter.
UNNECESSARY
That which is not required by the usual circumstances, which
is excessive or extreme when compared to the ordinary or which is
singularly unreasonable in respect to the the time, the place or the
prevailing circumstances.
USUAL
When referring to a particular vehicle, machine or other
device, the normal frequency range and pressure levels of sound(s)
emitted by that particular type of device when the same is properly
maintained in a good state of repair and working order and is being
lawfully and properly used in a reasonable manner.
It shall be unlawful and a violation of this
chapter for any person to install, maintain or use any audible burglar,
fire or other alarm that is not provided with a device that will automatically
and effectively shut off such alarm within 15 minutes of its initial
setoff when the same is located on any land or buildings and within
five minutes of its initial setoff when the same is located on any
vehicle.
[Amended 11-16-1999 by L.L. No. 4-1999; 4-15-2008 by L.L. No. 1-2008]
Any person, association, firm or corporation
which violates any provision of this chapter or assists in the violation
of any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation of
this chapter only and shall be punishable as follows:
A. By a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment
for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, for conviction of a first
offense.
B. By a fine of not more than $3,000 or by imprisonment
for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, for conviction of a second
offense, provided the first and second offenses were committed within
a period of five years of each other.
C. By a fine of not more than $5,000 or by imprisonment
for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, for conviction of the
third or subsequent offense or a series of offenses, all of which
were committed within a period of five years.
In the event that any clause, sentence, paragraph,
subdivision, section or other part of this chapter shall be adjudged
by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment
shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder of this chapter
but shall be confined in its operation to the specific clause, sentence,
paragraph, subsection, section or other part of this chapter directly
involved in the action or proceeding in which such judgment shall
have been rendered.