The Peru Gazette

By Donald McBrayer

The Town Board held a public hearing for the proposed Noise Ordinance on Monday January 24th. A half-dozen Peru residents were present, and made comments on the proposed ordinance.

James Falvo suggested expanding the line that allows for snow removal equipment “to be used at any time” to include the phrase “for snow removal”. Falvo suggested a scenario where an individual may run a snow-blower during the summer as a means to annoy a neighbor, while using the clause (as written) as a means for getting away with it. The suggested change was applied.

Falvo went on to express several other issues he had with the ordinance including one that the ordinance could be too restrictive to people living in multifamily homes.

Town Supervisor, Pete Glushko thanked Mr. Falvo for the input and reminded him that until now the only noise law that existed in Peru was a single unenforceable line in zoning that says noise must be limited to 80db. Glushko went on to say he doesn’t want the town to get involved with landlord/tenant disputes, but wanted some kind of enforceable law to be in place so complaints could be handled appropriately.

Don McBrayer reminded the board that this, like any law, was being created so harmony can exist between neighbors. “If anything,” McBrayer suggested, “the reality will be that this law will be under-enforced instead of over-enforced.” He went on to express his confidence in the state police to handle potential noise complaints in a confident and professional manner, and that this ordinance will allow action to be taken in the event of legitimate noise violations where currently no enforcement is possible.

Gordon Duprey expressed a concern about construction noise being allowed as early as 6AM. Town Councilor Kregg Bruno suggested that because of the short season and summer heat many contractors need to start early. After a bit of discussion the board decided to leave the time at 6AM.

Chip Blair, owner of Murphy’s Tavern, asked about entertainment noise. He said a neighbor once complained about kids that were singing during an afternoon fundraiser. Pete Glushko said the state police would probably find such a complaint invalid. Don McBrayer commented on Chip Blair’s concern stating he felt that the fifty-foot barrier being proposed in the ordinance was proper, and should be more than adequate to contain noise from the business. McBrayer ended the public input by stating he felt anyone has the right to conduct business, but not at the expense of his/hers neighbor’s right to harmony.

The Noise Ordinance was approved at the Regular Town Board Meeting, and can be viewed at:
http://d1091839.domain.com/PeruTown/towndocs/NoiseOrdinance.pdf