5 things to know about Beaufort's noise debate

A packed Beaufort City Council meeting last week and vigorous social-media threads show a renewed concern about the city's noise ordinance, particularly for downtown.

Police are also being called more often about noise, as complaints took a sharp rise at the beginning of 2014.

No rule changes are being proposed, despite a lengthy discussion Tuesday among City Council, residents and business owners.

Mayor Billy Keyserling seemed to sum up the council's dilemma when he halted the meeting discussion because of time constraints:

"On one hand, I'm hearing, 'Enforce the ordinance,'" he said. "And on the other, I'm hearing, 'Don't enforce the ordinance.'"

Here are five things to know about the latest debate about noise in Beaufort:

Noise complaints are rising.

Police reported no complaints in 2013, but had 37 last year, and at least two more have come in so far in 2015.

Since July 1, there have been 20 noise complaints on Bay Street and the surrounding downtown area, according to Beaufort Police Department call logs:

• 11 for music or people outside Panini's on the Waterfront and Hemingway's Bistro.
• Seven for street preachers.
• One for the apartments at Bay and Carteret streets.
• One for the daydock at the Beaufort Downtown Marina.

Few complaints lead to citations.

However, not all the complaints resulted in citations or even warnings. An officer noted in a Jan. 10 complaint for Panini's that: "They're well within the (sound) limit."

On Jan. 11, an officer arrived seven minutes after a 1:08 a.m. report of loud music and found: "There's no more music being played down here."

Several reports say music was turned down upon officers' request, and in one case, the report said a bartender at Hemingway's turned off an outside speaker that had been accidentally left on.

Three citations were issued during that time:

• To a man whom patrol officers heard screaming obscenities and continued to do so after they told him to stop.
• For a car stereo blasting music.
• To Panini's for loud music at 12:29 a.m. Dec. 21, an early Sunday morning. The call report does not say how loud the music was.

Talking about noise in Beaufort draws lots of public comments.

About 75 people showed up for City Council's meeting Tuesday after developer Dick Stewart of 303 Associates, who is considering building long-term residences downtown, said he wanted clarification on the ordinance, primarily "what the ordinance is and how it is going to be enforced."

Stewart didn't stake out a position, but many others have.

John North, who moved into a residence above bars on Bay Street last spring, is among the few publicly calling for a crackdown on loud music and noise in downtown's bar scene.

"I think at some point, this City Council has to be the adult in this room and say the party has to end at a reasonable hour," North said at Tuesday's meeting.

About 40 people have commented on The Beaufort Gazette's Facebook page since the issue surfaced, with overwhelming opposition to tougher enforcement.

Among the commenters was Brandi Annette Joyce, who wrote: "If you take the noise away, you take the money away! Beaufort thrives on tourist and the waterfront festivities! If there's a problem with it they need to move."

A noisemaker must "willfully disturb" to get cited.

Beaufort's noise ordinance has been on the books for 35 years and tweaked, questioned and tested in court during the 1990s, when the city cracked down on aggressive street preachers.

The key parts of the ordinance revolve around the phrase "willfully disturb," according to city attorney Bill Harvey. In other words, the person making the noise knows someone is complaining and continues to be noisy.

Music or noise that is "substantially audible" past 50 feet is sufficient proof of a noise violation, according to the ordinance. Sound exceeding 85 decibels at the property line at any time is also a violation.

The ordinance further restricts loud music or noise between 1 and 7 a.m. seven days a week, and between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday.

Beaufort is not alone in dealing with noise woes.

Noise ordinances vary widely in the surrounding region, with some, such as the town of Port Royal, keeping rules simple. Others, like Charleston, are more comprehensive and outline strict decibel levels and expectations.

Here's what other towns' noise ordinances require:

• Port Royal: Its ordinance only includes time-of-day restrictions for construction and moving of noisy objects such as trash cans. It restricts electronic noises and music or other sounds that are "unreasonably loud, disturbing, or unnecessary noise in the municipality."
• Bluffton: Updated in 2014, its ordinance restricts noise that would "disturb the quiet or repose" of people nearby after 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and after midnight Friday and Saturday. Additional restrictions were considered in the fall, but faced opposition and were never voted on by Town Council. Most changes proposed in recent years would apply mainly to businesses operating at night in Old Town.
• Hilton Head Island: Noise levels greater than 95 decibels are prohibited throughout the municipality. Specific zoned areas -- including gated residential communities -- have additional sound limits, which drop to lower levels at night.
• Beaufort County: Unincorporated areas have noise restrictions related to heavy or light industry, but no comparable noise ordinance to the city of Beaufort's.
• Savannah: Decibel limits range from 55 in noise-sensitive areas to 65 and 75 decibels in business and industrial districts. The ordinance includes provisions for noise up to 90 decibels; 50 feet away from source equipment; or during fairs, parades, outdoor concerts, neighborhood events and other activities. According to the code, "bars, taverns, lounges, nightclubs, dancehalls, game rooms and similar activities which produce a noise that is plainly audible beyond the premises shall be deemed a noise disturbance."
• Charleston: The city's detailed ordinance addresses "clamorous singing, yelling, shouting, whooping, bellowing, hollering, or other loud, obstreperous, wanton and unnecessary noises." It also has a Late-Night Entertainment Establishment Ordinance, which restricts noise that reaches neighboring properties or public areas between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. It also requires businesses to close doors and windows when playing music after 11 p.m., and a "nuisance" is declared when that music can be heard 50 feet away.

Follow reporter Erin Moody at twitter.com/IPBG_Erin.

Related content:

• Beaufort noise ordinance discussion draws passionate crowd, Jan. 27, 2015
• Downtown Beaufort bar seeks noise ordinance waiver for Water Festival, July 6, 2014
• After complaints about nightlife, Beaufort leaders consider noise ordinance, March 30, 2014

This story was originally published January 31, 2015 at 7:27 PM with the headline "5 things to know about Beaufort's noise debate."