By Taylor Sisk
Staff Writer
PITTSBORO – The Town of Pittsboro Board of Commissioners has issued an interim interpretation of the town’s noise ordinance that management of The City Tap says will allow the bar to continue to present live music.
At primary issue was where decibel levels should be measured when police respond to a complaint. The town ordinance allows for noise levels of up to 70 decibels and states that measurement of those levels should be made “beyond the property line from which the sound originates.â€
City Tap co-owners Steve Cote and Steve Carr have argued that if “beyond†is interpreted as being immediately at the property line, it would be impossible to host any live music other than acoustic without regularly being in violation.
At their Monday night meeting at Town Hall, the commissioners heard from Carr and three other Pittsboro residents – two voicing support for live music in Pittsboro and one neighbor of City Tap calling the bass lines emitted from the bar “unbelievable torture†– and from Community Policing Officer Troy Roberson. The board discussed the issue and subsequently voted unanimously to amend the ordinance with an interim interpretation, advising local law enforcement that when a complaint of excessive noise is received, decibel levels should be measured at the closest residential property line.
The City Tap is located a block from the courthouse and presents live bands on its back patio during warm-weather months. The bar recently has received complaints about the noise from a neighbor who lives two blocks away.
Roberson said at Monday night’s meeting that when complaints have been lodged, noise levels sometimes have been recorded in excess of 70 decibels and sometimes below. He also said that responding officers, uncertain of how to interpret “beyond the property line,†have measured from various distances.
Carr told the commissioners that the issue was not just about The City Tap but about drawing people to the downtown area. Lesley Landis spoke on behalf of the Chatham County Arts Council, saying that a lively downtown was important to the town’s economic vitality.
Cote and Carr have suggested raising the permissible noise level to 80 decibels and measuring at the source of the complaint.
Commissioner Michael Fiocco said he felt the board needed to balance a concern for people in the neighborhood being disturbed with “our desire to maintain a vibrant downtown,†and that he thought this amendment achieved that.
“The main objective was to address exactly what the ordinance meant and the problems that it was causing the police,†Fiocco said. “We needed a clear standard at which the ordinance will be applied.â€
Carr was pleased with the board’s decision. “I’m completely delighted that action was taken and that we have this rule,†he said. He also said that information he gathered at Monday night’s meeting was instructive. Gayle Hughes told the commissioners that the problem wasn’t with the music per se, but with the thump of the amplified bass.
Carr said that now knowing the issue is with bass lines, he and his staff would look into ways to improve the sound shield accordingly and would ask bands to set up in such a way as to minimize how far the bass carries.
“This is new information, and it gives us something to work with,†Carr said.