[Chat] FWD: Anti-noise bill meets praise, concern

arjay arjay at bcpl.net
Wed Nov 2 08:58:18 EST 2005


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Anti-noise bill meets praise, concern
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City Council proposal backed by residents, but some critics worry about 
violated free-speech rights

By Doug Donovan
Sun reporter

November 2, 2005
A City Council proposal to substantially increase penalties against noisy 
neighbors may provide a painful civics lesson for raucous college students 
renting apartments and houses in North Baltimore.

While the proposed measure aims to address excessive noise throughout 
Baltimore, it appears to have been spurred by neighborhood complaints about 
commotion caused by off-campus students from Loyola College and Towson 
University.

"This issue is probably the most significant one that we face," said Sam 
Stevenson, president of the Lake Evesham Community Association. "[Noise] is 
the most consistently discussed topic of conversation" at community meetings.

In Lake Evesham, wedged between York Road and Bellona Avenue south of Lake 
Avenue, several single-family houses are rented to college students, Stevenson 
said. There are also many townhouses along Northern Parkway, the 
neighborhood's southern boundary, occupied by Loyola and Towson 
undergraduates.

Stevenson and other community leaders said their neighborhoods are troubled by 
the stereotypical antics of college students, mostly loud late-night parties. 
In early October, city police arrested 32 students for a party at a house in 
the 800 block of E. Lake Ave.

"All of the guys who live in there are Sigma Pi [fraternity] kids," said 
Susanna Craine, a Towson spokesman.

A Sigma Pi member contacted last night - who declined to be identified because 
he is not an authorized fraternity spokesman - acknowledged the members are 
aware of problems at the house and said the group is trying to respect the 
neighborhood. The fraternity's president could not be reached.

All of the students who were arrested were released from custody. But if the 
proposed law had been in place, they might not have had a house to come home 
to.

The council proposal, introduced by Council Vice President Stephanie C. 
Rawlings Blake, provides for punishments including eviction, $1,000 fines, 
yearlong imprisonment and the city's right to "close" offending properties.

The proposal would ban daytime noise in residential areas over 55 decibels - 
about the volume of a loud conversation.

Excessive noise would become a public nuisance - joining prostitution and 
lewdness, gambling and drug sales - if the property owner were convicted of 
violating the ordinance twice or more in two years. Once that happened, the 
proposal would permit the police commissioner to hold a hearing and "order the 
closing of the premises" for up to one year.

Owners could escape penalties by posting bonds and promising to refrain from 
excessive noise, or by taking the city to court.

As the council considers the legislation, questions have been raised about 
enforcement and possible threats to free speech.

"On first blush it sounds a little extreme," Mayor Martin O'Malley said 
yesterday.

But, he added, he believes all city residents have a responsibility to respect 
their neighbors. He said the proposal might have been born of frustration from 
residents who have had a hard time proving violations of the existing 
ordinance.

Under Baltimore's health code, the threshold is 55 decibels in residential 
areas during the day and slightly lower at night. The law lets the city seek 
judgments of up to $1,000 against offenders, or issue $100 citations. On 
average, fewer than a dozen tickets are written each year.

"It's hard to prove," O'Malley said. "You have to be there at just the right 
time."

Several lawyers said the city will have to be careful not to offend 
constitutional protections of free speech by selectively enforcing the law.

Charles Keller III, a lawyer who unsuccessfully challenged a noise ordinance 
in Syracuse, N.Y., said such nuisance laws can face legal challenges if they 
are used as "pretexts to stop and detain someone and to search them."

But David C. Vladeck, an associate professor at Georgetown University Law 
Center, said all cities have the right to enforce such laws.

"Noise can be viewed properly by the city as another form of pollution," 
Vladeck said.

Chad Foice, president of the North Charles Business Association, said he is 
concerned with the 55-decibel threshold because several establishments in his 
neighborhood provide outdoor seating.

"It is something I'll watch in case we have to get involved," said Foice, 
general manager of Rocky Run, a restaurant and bar on St. Paul Street.

Another business owner, however, said she would welcome the ordinance. Alicia 
Horn, owner of Birds of a Feather in Fells Point, said her single-malt scotch 
bar is a quiet establishment where customers sip drinks to classical music. 
But she said the noise outside her Aliceanna Street bar - and her apartment 
upstairs - is unbearable.

She said she has a white-noise machine in her bedroom to get to sleep. She 
said the proposed legislation would provide more ammunition to make offenders, 
including bar owners, more accountable.

"I hope [the legislation] goes through," Horn said. "But it has to be 
enforced."

doug.donovan at baltsun.com

Copyright (c) 2005, The Baltimore Sun | Get Sun home delivery

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