Cottonwood Shores City Council passes long-awaited noise ordinance

By Emily Hilley-Sierzchula

The Cottonwood Shores City Council at its meeting on Thursday, March 17, unanimously passed a revised version of noise ordinance 8005, a staple on council agendas since January and an issue within the city for at least two years.
Although the noise ordinance applies to heavy equipment, vehicles and firearms, among many other sources of loud noise, complaints have been directed mainly at On The Rocks restaurant in the Castle Rock section of the city.

Between April and October of last year, two residents called officers 35 times about noise at the restaurant, with 16 of those calls made in one month alone.

Since October, “There have been far fewer complaints about the music level, with two complaints in March,” said Chris Bieze, police chief of the Cottonwood Shores Police Department. He added every time officers respond to a call, restaurant management turns the music down.

“It is my understanding that the restaurant has a plan, so hopefully their plan will be better for all parties involved,” Bieze said.

Management of the restaurant said they are ready to work with the city’s new ordinance.

“We see a silver lining by having a defined ordinance,” said Matt Orlando, On The Rocks owner. “We’ll still have to closely watch the noise level of our bands, and we’re okay with being vigilant about that.”

At the meeting, city council members reviewed and incorporated comments and suggestions from previous meetings into the revised ordinance.

“The new ordinance is a specific level ordinance, which means any complaint will be responded to with a calibrated sound pressure level meter to determine a violation,” said Mayor Donald Orr. “The ordinance is definitive and written well. It provides a specific level of tolerance for sound rather than a subjective one.”

Bieze said officers will measure the sound level when responding to noise complaints.  

For more on this story, see The Highlander on Friday, March 25.