Comments on: Council Approves Noise Ordinance

By: Lars

Lars — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

What a useless law. It does nothing but harm to downtown businesses. Does the law say how early in the morning the ban is lifted?

I for one have lived downtown in the past, and I've never been bothered by the late night entertainment. I have however been woken by a jackhammer at 6:00am.

By: will

will — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

I disagree, I think this law makes perfect sense. When the Jewish Mother was around, they had bands playing upstairs quite loud, with the windows open, well past midnight. Of course the dozens of people who live on the mall complained, but nothing was done at the time, and the Jewish Mother went out of business for unrelated reasons. While no restaraunt does this sort of thing at the moment, there was until yesterday absolutely nothing keeping it from happening again. Now there is, and so similar problems in the future are avoided.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

it was perfectly said to me just yesterday in fact. charlottesville has hundreds of quiet neighborhoods where nothing happens, and only one downtown. if you want quiet, move, youve got plenty to chose from.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Yeah, and I’m thinking maybe the West Main Street corrider could be a toxic waste zone. Charlottesville has plenty of clean, pollution-free neighborhoods, so if the residents of the West Main Street area don’t like it, they can just move.

By: will

will — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

That’s a ridiculous suggestion. If your neighborhood had no noise ordinance, and a band set up across the street from you at midnight and started playing, would you just say, “Oh, that’s too bad. Guess I better move to a new neighborhood.” No, you wouldn’t. So why should these people? It’s their neighborhood, they have the right to have at least some semblance of a noise ordinace, considering that the rest of us do.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

good point, but is downtown just another “neighborhood”?

By: Lars

Lars — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

Downtown didn't have a noise ordinance because it is a commercial district. My neighborhood does and always has because it is a residential district. It seems to me that if you want to run a nightclub or a bar or whatever, you should have a place to do it. Its not like the people who moved downtown didn't know that there was no noise ordinance. Its not that they should move away, they shouldnt have moved there in the first place.

If you move next door to a toxic waste dump, and you knew it was there, should you insist that the government pick it up and move it somewhere else?
Ofcourse not, you knew what you were getting into.

Basically, I'm assuming this only covers downtown, and there are other areas that dont have this ordinance. This means that businesses that used to operate downtown will be forced to move to those areas, accelerating the already serious problem of "downtown decay" that has plauged the mall and main st. for some time now.

By: will

will — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

You have very good points and I would normally agree with you, but the thing that you’re overlooking is that Downtown is not like most other commercial districts. There are a large number of people living there. No one lives in Fashion Square Mall, and no one lives in Barracks Road Shopping Center, so it makes sense that there is no noise ordinance there. However, people do live Downtown, so I believe that they deserve at least some semblance of a noise ordinance. The ordinance takes into account the environment by kicking in later on Friday and Saturday nights, and it doesn’t overlap with any regular events Downtown that are already in place, as far as I know. Thus it seems to be nicely unintrusive while protecting Downtown residents from potential annoyances like what used to happen at the Jewish Mother.

By: ben

ben — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

What you said really doesn't change the fact that the people that live downtown (i.e. on the mall) knew what they were doing when they moved there. It's a comercial area first and foremost, and if people want to live there, that's fine too, but it makes no sense to then force the businesses to adapt to the residents. Furthermore, the quiet hours start on 10:00pm Sun-Th and 12:00am F,Sat. Personally, I think those should at least be two hours later, so that on friday and saturday, Millers can play til closing.

And to reiterate what Lars said, in the short time I lived downtown, I had never been kept awake by bands and the like, but I had been worken up by various pieces of machinery before 9am.

ben.c

By: Big_Al

Big_Al — Wed, 31 Dec 1969 19:00:00 +0000

I used to, and like Downtown Charlottesville it is mixed use Heaven (or Hell, depending on your perspective). Bars and clubs next to apartments, people parking everywhere, people passing out on your door stoop, you name it. Believe me, Downtown Charlottesville has NOTHING on a place like Georgetown (or the French Quarter, which also has a lot of residential abodes), and I don't recall people there ever really complaining much about the noise, which on a Monday would drown out C'ville on its rowdiest Saturday night.

The bottom line is, people usually choose to live in such an area because it's a hip-happening-now kind of place. You take the bitter (noise, trash, parking hell, etc) with the sweet (convenience, night life, etc), and you roll with it to make the best of it.

Except, apparently, here. It's a shame, and it's why the Downtown Mall - for the most part - rolls up the brick pavers at around 9 on most nights.

I am curious to see how the City plans to deal with this new ordinance on New Year's Eve. I imagine they'll either look the other way, or grant an exception to First Night. Either way, you can be sure that in this town somebody will whine about the noise if it continues past the specified time.