Fort Walton Beach Ordinance — 2073--Noise Ordinance — reading text

difference between Total Sound Level and Ambient Sound Level ( TSL— ASL)]. 9. 06. 13 Inspections. 1) For the purpose of determining compliance with the provisions of this chapter, the Noise Control Administrator or their designated representative is hereby authorized to make inspections of all noise sources and to take measurements and make tests whenever necessary to determine the quantity and character of noise. 2) No person shall refuse to allow the Noise Control Administrator or their designated representative to perform reasonable sound testing on any device or devices, including but not limited to requiring the temporary shutting down of said device or devices for the purposes of such testing except that upon showing that the inspection would produce a  noticeable interruption of services that would cause discomfort to employees or customers or require a building engineer or other professional to work with the equipment. Such authorized employee shall reschedule the inspection for a more convenient time. 3) In the event that any person refuses or restricts entry and free access to any part of a premises or refuses inspection, testing or noise measurement of any activity, device, facility or process where inspection is sought, the Noise Control Administrator and/ or designated representative may seek from the appropriate court a warrant without interference, restriction or obstruction, at a reasonable time, for the purpose of inspecting, testing or measuring noise. 4) No person shall hinder, obstruct, delay, resist, prevent in any way, interfere or attempt to interfere with, any authorized person while in the performance of their duties under this chapter. 9. 06. 14 Application for Permit. 1) Any person who owns or operates a sound source in one of the following categories may apply for a permit from the Noise Control Administrator or their designee: private or public celebrations, construction projects outside of permissible hours, or sound- producing devices in public areas. 2) Applications for a permit shall set forth the following information: a. The name and address of the applicant. b. The name and location of the noise source for which such application is made. c. The reason for which the permit is requested, including the hardship that will result to the applicant or the public if the variance is not granted. d. The nature and intensity of noise that will occur during the period of the permit. e. The section or sections of this chapter to which the variance shall apply. f. Applications for after-hours construction permits shall include an explanation as to why the construction could not be completed during regular hours as well as a presentation of adequate proof that compliance with this chapter would impose an arbitrary or unreasonable hardship upon the applicant without equal or greater benefit to the public. 3) The applicant' s failure to supply the foregoing information shall be cause for rejection of the application. 4) The Noise Control Administrator may charge the applicant a fee in accordance with the  Comprehensive Fee Schedule to cover expenses resulting from the processing of the permit application. 5) In making the determination on granting a permit, the Noise Control Administrator shall consider: a. The character and degree of injury to, or interference with, the health and welfare of the reasonable use of property which is caused or threatened to be caused by the sound to result from the permit. b. The social and economic value of the activity for which the permit is sought. c. The ability of the applicant to apply best practical noise control measures, if appropriate. 6) The permit shall enumerate the specific dates and times for which the permit is valid and may establish specific sound level limits which may not be exceeded at the nearest affected residential or noise sensitive property that apply during the period of the permit. 9. 06. 15 Revocation of Permit. 1) The permit may be revoked by the Noise Control Administrator if: a. There is a violation of one or more conditions of the permit, including but not limited to sound level limits specified in the permit; or b. There is a material misrepresentation of fact in the permit application; or c. There is a material change in any of the circumstances relied upon by the Noise Control Administrator in granting the permit. 9. 06. 16 Enforcement. 1) This section governs the initiation of enforcement actions, the issuance of citations and/ or summons for violations of this Chapter, and the imposition of penalties for violations of this Chapter. 2) If a person violates any provision of this Chapter or an order issued pursuant thereto, the enforcement agency may issue a citation and/ or summons, institute an action in a court of competent jurisdiction for injunctive relief to prohibit and prevent such violation or violations in which event the matter shall proceed as a summary matter in the municipal court of competent jurisdiction. 3) Any person violating any provision of this ordinance shall be fined as follows. Fine rates shall be included in the City' s Comprehensive Fee Schedule. a. First Offense.  b. Second Offense. c. Third offense or two or more violations occurring within any six months period. d. Each time a noise control officer or investigator is required to respond, and more than an hour has passed since their last response, a new violation may be generated and may constitute a separate violation. If the sound source found to be in violation is a sound production device, each separate hour in which a violation of this chapter exists may constitute a separate violation providing that adequate notification has been served to the responsible entity that a violation of this Chapter exists. 4) The enforcement agency shall classify a violation as a " major" or " minor" violation for the purposes of issuing an enforcement document and compliance grace period. If compliance is achieved during the grace period, then no fine shall be levied. A violation shall be classified as a major violation if it is not deemed a minor violation. A violation is deemed to be minor if: a. The violation is not the result of willful, reckless or grossly negligent conduct of the violator; and, b. The activity or condition constituting the violation has not been the subject of an enforcement action against the violator in the immediately preceding 12 months; or, c. The violation is not the result of the operation of a sound production device of any kind, with the exception of safety warning devices; or, b. The violation is not the result of excessive sound resulting from the removal or modification of a muffler installed by the manufacturer of any device or vehicle. 5) If the violation is deemed to be minor, the enforcement agency shall notify the violator that the activity of condition must be corrected and compliance achieved within 30 days or less at the discretion of the enforcement agency or any other reasonable period of time not to exceed 180 days to be determined based upon the nature, extent and impact of the violation and a reasonable estimate of the time needed to correct the violation. The violator may request from the enforcement agency an extension of the compliance deadline and the enforcement agency may approve any reasonable request for an extension if the violator can demonstrate that a good faith effort has been made to achieve compliance. The Noise Control Administrator shall offer special consideration during the six ( 6) month period immediately following final enactment of this Chapter for pre- existing sound sources which will require physical plant modifications to come into compliance. 6) If the violation is deemed to be minor, the enforcement agency shall notify the violator that if compliance is achieved within the period of time specified in the enforcement document, the enforcement agency shall not seek to collect fines from or impose other penalties upon the violator for that violation. 7) If during the grace period the sound emissions for which the violation has been assessed increase in duration or intensity, the Noise Control Administrator may revoke the grace period. In determining whether to revoke the grace period, the Noise Control Administrator may consider the following factors: the relative increase in intensity; whether the change of sound emissions is directly related to ongoing sound abatement measures; and, the anticipated duration of the increased sound levels. 8) If the violator does not correct a minor violation within the period of time specified in the enforcement document, the violation is reclassified as major and the enforcement agency may seek injunctive relief and/ or a penalty for a violation(s) of this Chapter. If the enforcement agency has reason to believe that the violator is not acting in good faith during the grace period, they may conduct further investigations during that period, and if the violator has not achieved compliance within the period of time specified in the enforcement document, the enforcement agency may prosecute any violations documented during the grace period. 9) If the violation is not deemed to be minor, it shall be classified as a major violation and the enforcement agency shall notify the violator that the violation shall be corrected upon notice of said violation. There will not be a period of time allowed to correct the violation before a penalty is sought, and that the violator may be liable to civil penalties and imprisonment for that violation, and the enforcement agency may seek summary injunctive relief. 10) Any claims for a civil penalty may be compromised and settled based upon any of the following factors: a. Mitigating or other extenuating circumstances; or b. The timely implementation by the violator of measures which lead to compliance; or c. The conduct of the violator; or., d. The compliance history of the violator. 11) The owner of the property or any responsible entity lawfully entitled to possess the property or manage a business premises from which the offending sound is emitted at the time the offending sound is emitted shall be jointly and severally liable for compliance with this ordinance even if not present upon or in the property,