For the purpose of this article, the following
words and phrases are defined as follows:
From 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. every day.
Abbreviation for the sound level in decibels determined by
the A-weighting network of a sound-level meter or by calculation from
octave band or one-third octave band data.
The Department of Planning and Community Development and/or
the Police Department.
From 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. every day.
The intensity, frequency, duration, and character of sound,
including sound and vibration of subaudible frequencies.
The presence of noise of sufficient loudness, character and
duration which, whether from a single source or multiple sources,
is, or may be predicted with reasonable certainty to be, injurious
to health or which unreasonably interferes with the proper enjoyment
of property or with any lawful business or activity.
Any individual, group of individuals, firm, partnership,
voluntary association, or private, public, or municipal corporation,
or political subdivision of the state, or department, bureau, agency,
or instrument of federal, state, or local government, responsible
for the use of property.
Any sound produced by a radio, tape player, phonograph, disc
player, computer, loudspeaker, microphone or other mechanical sound-making
device or instrument, including an amplified, acoustic or percussive
instrument, that can be clearly heard by a person using his or her
own normal hearing faculties. Any law enforcement officer who hears
a sound that is plainly audible, as defined herein, shall be entitled
to measure the sound according to the following standards:
The primary means of detection shall be by means
of the officer's ordinary auditory senses, so long as his or her hearing
is not enhanced by any mechanical device, such as a hearing aid.
The police officer need not determine the particular
words or phrases being produced or the name of any song or artist
producing the sound. The detection of a rhythmic bass reverberating-type
sound is sufficient to constitute a plainly audible sound.
The police officer must be able to determine
the source or origin of the sound, whether by direct line of sight
from the affected residential property or by articulating such other
reasonable basis for such determination if there is no direct line
of sight confirmation of the source or origin of the sound.
Any person or property, real or personal, contributing to
noise pollution.
An area within the Town within which certain uniform regulations
or requirements apply under the Town's Zoning Ordinance. For the purposes
of this article, zoning districts shall be classified as follows.
Boundaries of the zoning districts shall be determined as specified
on the attached map, shown as Exhibit A.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit A is posted in the
Town Hall.
A.
Except as provided for herein, no person shall create
or permit noise levels that exceed those specified in Table 1; such
noise levels are the maximum levels permitted by state law.
|
Table 1
Maximum Allowable Noise Levels (dBA) for
Receiving Zoning Districts
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Day/Night
|
Industrial
|
Commercial
|
Residential
| |
|
Day
|
75
|
67
|
65
| |
|
Night
|
75
|
62
|
55
| |
C.
It is unlawful for any person or persons to play,
use or operate or permit to be played, used or operated any radio,
tape recorder, cassette player or other machine or device for reproducing
sound if the sound generated is audible at a distance of 50 feet from
the device producing the sound and if the device is located in or
on either of the following:
D.
Possession by a person or persons of any of the machines or devices or instruments enumerated in Subsection C shall be prima facie evidence that the person operates, or those persons operate, the machine or device.
[Amended 12-3-2012 by Ord. No. 756-12]
E.
It is unlawful for any person to cause or permit, beyond the property
line of a source, vibration of such direct intensity to cause another
person to be aware of the vibration by such direct means as sensation
of touch or visual observation of moving objects. The observer shall
be located at or within the property line of the receiving property
when vibration determinations are made.
[Added 12-3-2012 by Ord. No. 756-12]
A.
The provisions of this article do not apply to devices
used solely for the purpose of warning, protecting, or alerting the
public, or some segment thereof, of the existence of an emergency
or hazardous situation.
B.
The provisions of this article do not apply to the
following:
(1)
Household tools and portable appliances in normal
usage during the daylight hours.
(2)
Lawn care and snow removal equipment (daytime only)
when used and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications.
(3)
Blasting operations for demolition and construction
(daytime only).
(4)
Emergency operations.
(5)
Pile driving equipment during the daytime hours of
8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
(6)
Sound created by sporting events, amusement and entertainment
events or other public gatherings operated in accordance with properly
issued permits and/or licenses and conducted in accordance with all
applicable local laws, ordinances and regulations, provided that said
sound is not electronically amplified.
(7)
Construction and repair work on public property.
(8)
Air-conditioning or heat pump equipment used to cool
or heat housing on residential property. For this equipment, a person
may not cause or permit noise levels which exceed 70 dBA for air-conditioning
equipment at receiving residential property and 75 dBA for heat pump
equipment at receiving residential property.
B.
Variance requests submitted to the Town shall be in
writing and shall include evidence to show that compliance will create
undue hardship and that no reasonably practicable alternative is available.
C.
Upon receipt of a request for a variance, the Town
Events Committee shall schedule a hearing to be held within 60 days.
D.
Upon receipt of a variance application, the Town Events
Committee shall publish notice of the public hearing in at least one
newspaper of general circulation in the Town. Such notice shall be
published at least seven days prior to the hearing date. The notice
shall include the name of the applicant and such additional information
as the Town Events Committee may require. The applicant shall be responsible
for all advertising fees.
F.
Variances shall be renewable after a public hearing
scheduled following the receipt by the Town Events Committee of evidence
that conditions under which the variance was originally granted have
not changed significantly. All renewals require the same notice and
timing as the initial application.
G.
The applicant for a variance shall reimburse the Town
Events Committee for any costs incurred by the Town associated with
hearings and decisions related to the variance.
H.
In issuing variances under this article, the Town
Events Committee shall consult with the Maryland Department of the
Environment to assure that consistency with state noise laws and regulations
is maintained.
A.
The equipment and techniques employed in the measurement
of noise levels may be those recommended by the Maryland State Department
of the Environment, which may, but need not, refer to currently accepted
standards of recognized organizations, including but not limited to
the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), American Society
for Testing and Materials (ASTM), Society of Automotive Engineers
(SAE), and United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
B.
The measurement of noise levels shall be conducted
at points on or within the property line of the receiving property
or the boundary of a zoning district and may be conducted at any point
for the determination of identity in multiple source situations.
C.
Sound-level meters used to determine compliance shall
meet or exceed the specifications of the American National Standards
Institute or its successor bodies, ANSI S1.4-1971 for Type II sound-level
meters.
A.
It will be prima facie evidence of a violation of this article if the sound or noise can be heard and measured at the levels described in § 345-2 above.
B.
Where the noise source is located in a building or
other structure, the owner, occupant, resident, manager, or other
person in charge of the premises shall, if present, be presumed to
have permitted the noise in the absence of evidence to the contrary.
C.
Where portable noise-producing devices such as radios,
tape recorders/players, compact disc players, stereos, etc., are present
in, or being transported through, a public area, street, park, etc.,
either by a person or in a vehicle, the person or persons in possession
of the device and/or vehicle shall be presumed to have permitted the
noise in the absence of evidence to the contrary.
D.
A police officer, or other designated enforcement
official of the Town, may, if he has probable cause to believe a prima
facie violation of this article is being committed in his presence,
view, or hearing, issue a municipal infraction or citation as hereafter
provided.
B.
Each day a violation occurs will be considered a separate
offense, and each time that a violation is committed in any one day
shall be considered a separate offense.
C.
Police officers, or other duly appointed and authorized
Town officials, may issue orders to cease and desist under guidelines
approved by the Town of Bel Air.
D.
In addition to the foregoing remedy, the Town may
seek any other remedies available to it at law or in equity.
E.
A violator who has submitted to the Town a plan for
compliance with this article and has that plan or amendments to it
approved by the Town may not be considered to be in violation of this
article as long as he acts in accordance with the original or amended
plan. All such plans for compliance will be on file with the Town
of Bel Air Police Department.
F.
Nothing herein should be construed to prohibit enforcement
of the state laws and regulations by the Maryland Department of the
Environment.
