Letter to the editor: Camden’s proposed noise ordinance is a good starting point

Tue, 10/25/2016 - 2:45pm

I was the chairman of the Working Group charged by the Camden Select Board in early 2015 to research the need for an improved Noise Ordinance. Working with the Camden Planning Board, we provided recommendations to the Select Board regarding the need for and type it should be.

Comments are circulating that the proposed amendment (Article No.4 on the ballot) was not reviewed or discussed at the select board or planning board meetings and public input was not considered. This is incorrect.

The working group, including the Police Chief and planning board, spent a year reviewing several years’ worth of complaints.  Over three months, the Police Department created a database of noise readings from numerous locations. Ordinances from around Maine and the USA were reviewed.

Following, over six months, the working group crafted a zone-by-zone Noise Ordinance. This was extensively reviewed by the planning board. All review meetings included public participation and comment. Ultimately, the Chief and planning board were not prepared to recommend a zone-by-zone ordinance to the select board, because Camden’s zones are only separated by lines on a map, not physical boundaries. A single, town-wide standard was proposed for ease of implementation.

The working group selected 65 dBA max, because this is the average limit of the ordinances reviewed. It represents a level of activities which are not excessively disruptive and is not overly restrictive.

In November 2015, the working group presented the select board with the year’s research. Public comment and discussion took place at this time.

Why do we need to consider a revision to the existing Noise Ordinance?

The Chief requests the existing Nuisance Ordinance be corrected by adding a simple, objective, maximum noise level for sleeping hours (defined as 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.) for the fair handling of complaints and resolution of disputes. The number of noise complaints has grown in recent years, especially in areas that mix business and residential use. Some businesses have requested an objective standard by which they can proactively police themselves. Currently, the police, when called on a complaint, must rely on their subjective judgement of the severity of the disturbance, making it difficult to fairly resolve a complaint.

The working group and the select board believe this proposal is a good starting point. The ordinance can be revisited in the future if adjustment is warranted. The consensus of the planning board and select board is it is better to have a simple, maximum nighttime noise level to address complaints than none at all.

The goal is to maintain the quality of life we all enjoy without being unnecessarily restrictive with our ordinances.

 

John Scholz is a Camden Planning Board member and lives in Camden