At the recent Boardwalk Committee meeting on Wednesday, March 14, the topic was NOISE. Excessive noise.
The challenge: measurement of excessive noise and enforcement of noise ordinances in and around the Boardwalk Tourism area.
Members of the AC Health Dept., including Dale Finch of AC L&I were there. Tropicana was there too, as their Boardwalk speaker system oftens blares loud commercials encouraging to gamble online.
Residents who live in and around the Boardwalk have complained. So have those who simply walk the Atlantic City Boardwalk.
Major question: What is the noise law? How are ordinances enforced? How is testing executed? Who is certified to perform the tests?
The biggest areas of concern are the beach bars, outdoor parties, video screens that line the Boardwalk, and the area around Tropicana.
Issues that can affect noise levels include altitude of the individuals affected by the noise (20th floor of their condo vs. down on the Boardwalk), as well as wind, atmospheric pressure, temperature, humidity, and other factors.
Chief Inspector Harold Reaves said the Health Department is responsible for measuring and enforcement. In the large majority of cases, he and his staff personally respond to complaints, at all hours of the day or night. He indicated that there is no “time limit” on when noise levels must be lowered, and that testing must be done when noise levels are high, as well as when there is no noise to allow for a comparative benchmark sound level.
Violators of the ordinances are first warned, then fined, with excessive fines resulting in the business having its license revoked. However, it appears that no business has had its license revoked for excessive noise in recent memory. It was pointed out that the State sets the fines, not the City. The largest fines are in the $3,000 range.
Most businesses seem not to care about the fines. They think the music helps attract more customers. It’s worth the risk and penalty. Noise offenders often turn down the music when officers or monitors are present, but then turn it up when they leave.
Rodney Hammock of the Health Department explained the codes. 65 decibels is the limit in Atlantic City, but this is not a City-mandated level. The ordinance was established by the State of New Jersey; the City does not have its own law and has had to adopt the State guidelines, which were written to favor businesses over residents. During the summer, the natural background noise (large numbers of people, surf, wind, birds, etc.) is close to 55 decibels. There is a difference between sound in the contained areas between buildings and unobtrusive sound, which is sound that doesn’t bounce. Offending noise cannot be measured at the source; it must be measured from a “similar” complaint area. For example, if a complaint comes from the 20th floor, the sound must be measured from either that floor or a nearby area approximately the same distance from the source.
Additionally, the monitoring equipment must be recalibrated every year (the monitors are currently having this done at the manufacturer in Wisconsin and should be back within several weeks), and operators must be trained in classes that are only offered by the State at certain times during the year. Tom indicated that in his conversations with ACPD Chief White, police officers will soon be trained in use of the equipment. Dale Finch will determine when the State-offered and scheduled training classes are taking place prior to the summer and will work with Chief White to enroll officers in the classes.
The Ocean Club has purchased their own sound monitoring equipment and has trained their own personnel. They have been working with the Health Department and the City to address this issue, and will continue to do so.
A resident pointed out that monitoring is fine, but they need help with enforcement. Lt. Williams also reinforced that officers will be trained by summer in measurement and operation by this summer. He also stressed that “noise” is a relative and subjective term, and that music or broadcasts that are questionable or offensive to some may not necessarily be that to others, and that the science of sound is the sole basis of whether or not the sound is or is not in compliance with the ordinance. Addressing the question of overzealous DJs, he stated that the businesses are responsible for policing their DJs, and are the ones who are cited when violations occur; and that sometimes the microphones are too loud, but not necessarily the music.
Norm Nealy and Terri Lutz of the Tropicana stressed that they are willing to comply with the noise regulations and wish to have good relations with their neighbors. They broadcast “mellower” sounds in the morning and early part of the day, but they do increase both volume and “intensity” of the music later in the day. They indicated their sound system is designed to keep the majority of sound within their property’s reach on the Boardwalk and Beach. Their tenants also provide their own sound, and going forward the Tropicana will work with their tenants to control the noise. They do not own monitoring equipment, but are willing to work with L&I and the Health Department to help resolve this issue.
The excessive volume of the Boardwalk TVs and “rogue” merchants who compete with each other by trying to overpower their rivals with increasingly louder music or announcements is also a significant concern. The TVs seem to be loudest in the more densely populated areas in the vicinity of the casinos, but are not that loud (and possibly muted) at the farther ends of the Boardwalk. The TV operators were invited to the meeting, but did not attend.
A question was raised: has the City ever formally notified Boardwalk businesses of the noise ordinances? Dale Finch indicated that this has not happened recently, which prompted a suggestion that the City publicize the pending enforcement of the ordinances through the local media, or by direct contact (flyers/etc.) with all Boardwalk merchants. Mr. Finch indicated that he would work with the Mayor’s office to initiate a press release or other publicity campaign.
Our next meeting will be Wednesday, April 11, 9:30 a.m., at Boardwalk Hall.
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