In a 4-1 vote during the February 16th city commission meeting, the elected officials approved introducing the new noise ordinance. The proposed Ordinance, No. 22-O-13, prohibits “noise disturbances.”
`The new ordinance allows police officer to initiate complaints and provides a distinction in application based on land use.
Commissioner Jack Porter was in opposition to the ordinance.
For several years noise disturbances have caused disruptions around the city, increasingly so since the onset of the pandemic. Large parking lot gatherings have become more popular since nightclubs and bars were closed due to safety measures.
The gatherings have led to residential area disturbances, illegal activities, and sometimes violent crimes. Currently, TPD cannot adequately enforce instances of excessive noise with the current noise ordinance.
The commissioners reviewed two choices for the noise ordinance. In both ordinance options, a noise disturbance is defined as “sound which is unreasonably loud, raucous, or jarring to a reasonable person of normal sensitivities and which is plainly audible to a police officer or code enforcement officer,” at a distance of 100 feet or greater.
Also, both options allow the police officer to be the complainant, whereas the original regulation requires the complaint to come from a citizen. Therefore, the changes permit the officer to handle the situation using their best discretion.
Furthermore, both options hold property owners accountable for noise nuisance and allow officers to enforce noise standards such as dispersion of crowds and increase penalties.
The proposed civil penalties in the ordinances are $250 for a first violation, $350 for a second violation, and finally $500 for a third offense and any subsequent violations.
The primary difference between the two choices is that the second option eliminates the distinction between residential and urban core, where sound is only regulated between 2:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. Thus, bars and nightclubs would be subject to a complaint during operating hours, up to 2:00 a.m., which could potentially strain TPD resources unnecessarily.
The public hearing for the approved noise ordinance is scheduled for March 9th, 2022.
City of Tallahassee Moves Forward with Noise Ordinance Changes added by Lynsey Kirk on
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It’s December 2022. Has the time changed for the noise ordinance. I’m so sick of hearing people racing cars all hours of the day. People start banging on there houses for repairs before dark and after. Boom boxes blasting all hours of the day everyday. Thanks for listening.
Re: Anonymous ; who posted in Feb., 2022…never be afraid to post without putting your name to it..you have a valid point…it’s sad the politicians are looked to and elected into office to solve problems for the few. Whatever the Karen’s gripes are, they may need a mortise and passel if this pills to hard to swallow, but getting laws passed to get what you want, or make it that much easier to pick up the local police on speed dial, to complain with some degree of satisfaction, well, that is fascism..how many laws are needed to control individualism? More and more laws are passed then put on back burner because it was a sales tool to push an agenda where the locale “can make money” hence policing for profits’ definition comes from…then an overworked police department has to be the heavy because a few, sometimes even one person’s ideals were violated because of an inability to cope…kids do need social places without restrictions but within reason, to learn life lessons outside of a school with real life situations and consequences…remove the warning labels, take off the bubble wrap and helmets and let them figure it out..lm a Gen X student, drank from the garden hose, met in the parking lot to settle beef without cops being called, no seat belts, 3 channels on TV, national anthem, star spangled banner, southern cross and old Glory, and fire and brimstone on Sunday, don’t come home till dark, see your mom maybe once a week…but it’s up to adults to be involvedas parents should but let them leave the nest and l feel like other adults need to be positive mentors for the youth of today…but to pass laws and ordinances to restrict noise, or window tint, or gatherings, people are introducing policing into young people’s lives and telling them they can’t or they won’t. Then comes the bad choices..if you have sheltered your children from everything, then question parenting skills but kiss at that age should be able to congregate and police themselves with introducing law enforcement and making them decide how to punish or reprimand them or introduce them to a unrelenting system with an unforgiving but judgemental rabbithole…but if you are a Karen and you with know if you are one do us all a favor…therapy and stfu….
Is there any interest out there to try to get police to enforce noise ordinance on cars with loud mufflers, revving their loud engines downtown, or they’re screaming boom boxes. If you want people to live downtown, that needs to be seriously considered. Does anyone else agree, or have ideas how to approach the problem
This passing of this noise ordinance I hope this helps a great deal to break down the barriers of gangs.
Children need to go into a healthier direction in their lives.
Thank you
@Snidely Whiplash, Yep BUT, at least it will be on the Books. It will go the way of the Window Tint Law. To dark and you get a big Fine and have to remove it. TPD even bought special machines for their Officers to determine if it was too Dark. That lasted about a Year after they spent a couple Hundred Thousand Dollar on it. Every Morning and Night I see Cars with burnt out Headlights and Tail Lights, No Brake Lights and they do nothing about it. This will be the same, Gung Ho for about a Year and then ……………………..
I find it to be kind of disappointing that a lot of locals think this proposal is going to be a real thing and fail to see it as the in your face pre election pandering that it really is.
Everybody should take it down a notch. Everyone is being hateful, everyone needs to chill out with the “hate hype”,
Life is short,
All these witty little hate lines don’t solve problems,
You’re just breeding more and more hate and hostility,
Just stop already or an entire generation of 20 somethings are going to be riddled with heart disease , behavior problems and poverty,
Pull yourself up out of the pit of hate and realize that life is fleeting and what goes around comes around,
Be it hate or good tidings you WILL reap what you sew children.
?
Why would any one be against this?
I’m in opposition to Jack Porter. She is awful.
The locals that attend these pop up parties are 98% black. If anyone thinks our local Nannies are “really” going to enforce this campaign promise than those people are the complete and total idiot sheeple local Leon County/Tallahassee voters.
Sadly there are enough of that type of local voters to vote our Nannies right back into office.
The real problem lies between the ears of our local idiot voters not the fools they keep electing. And winning over that Gray matter between our local voters ears is the toughest battle that must be won if there is ever to be substantial positive change in the way local business in done in Leon County/Tallahassee.
If you are congregating in a parking lot for a social activity you are a loser and need to change your modus operandi. Perhaps you could get a job, read your Bible, study your lessons for your next day’s assignments, read a book, take a course, volunteer, clean your house, join a Civic organization, etcetera… perhaps then your social standing will improve 100% in the community being that it was previously at zero.
At first I thought our Nannies were angling for some sort of scam to get some government covid money…after additional pondering on our Nannies motives I admit I was wrong.
After all the time of disregarding the noise complaint demands fromvtheir constituents it finally came to me:
The motive for “promised” action is…IT’S ELECTION SEASON!!!!
ps: if you expect actual relief you won’t be so happy…it’s just an empty “promise” voting sheeple. But somehow deep in your twisted leftist hearts you local voting sheeple already know that.
Who ya gonna vote for?