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Downtown too loud at night?
Council to consider noise ordinance

Patrick Whitehurst/WGCN
Loud music from nearby downtown businesses disturbs customers staying at his hotel, according to Grand Canyon Hotel owner Oscar Fredrickson.

Patrick Whitehurst/WGCN Loud music from nearby downtown businesses disturbs customers staying at his hotel, according to Grand Canyon Hotel owner Oscar Fredrickson.

WILLIAMS - A new ordinance to control noise levels in the downtown area is in the works, following a discussion on the matter by members of Williams City Council during their regular meeting May 28. Officials plan to look at the creation of a new ordinance, controlled by decibel levels, which may limit the volume of live music in the area during evening hours. The current noise ordinance, they said, is far outdated and no longer applicable to downtown Williams.

Grand Canyon Hotel owner Oscar Fredrickson spoke to council members about the possible noise ordinance during the meeting. He said the noise issue stems from live musicians who play downtown at night, particularly during the summer months, but also during off-peak times as well. According to Fredrickson, the noise is so loud that many of his customers complain.

"This came about two months ago when we had an incident with one of the bars in the central area," Fredrickson said. "The difficulty we had is that we live and work in the same hotel, so we don't actually close the doors at 5 p.m. and go to Country Club or go to a different part of the community where we don't hear any of the noise."

He cited a number of incidents of loud music coming from downtown bars. While there is a city ordinance in place for loud music, that ordinance only applies to speakers in vehicles. Fredrickson said he hopes to see the ordinance changed to include speakers attached to buildings as well.

"As a result of our hotel business we do have people that stay on Route 66. They come from all over the world. In these last nine months we've had 63 countries represented in our guests. Often as not, they're on different time zones. So when they get into Williams, they go to bed. Then they have this music that is so loud that the windows actually vibrate," Fredrickson said.

While he would like to see a change to the existing city ordinance when it comes to noise, he added that he would be opposed to an ordinance that would infringe upon the rights of business owners.

"It's not necessarily specific to our intersection. It could be anywhere in town," Fredrickson said. "The whole point of this is that, when you're trying to attract business, and when you're doing everything you can, I'm 100 percent for that. Be it the carriages parking in front of our business, we're happy to have them out there, but the problem that we see is that there has to be some sort of a limit as to how long this music can go on."

Williams City Council Member Jim Wurgler said the matter of noise in the downtown area has been a concern of his for a couple of years. He called the current noise ordinance "totally inadequate."

"Something does have to be done with that," Wurgler said. "The question of turning the volume up is an ongoing issue."

Council members spoke about the possibility of purchasing a device that would read decibel levels, should they enact a noise ordinance.

According to Williams Police Chief Herman Nixon, using decibel levels to enforce city ordinance would be easily accomplished.

"There is a state statute that covers noise disturbance. The problem with that is that somebody has to be a victim and come to court with all this," Nixon said. "Most people don't want to do this. A decibel figure would work out perfectly for the police department."

Williams Mayor John Moore said the current ordinance was enacted in 1961.

"It's obsolete. It's no good," Moore said, adding that city officials need to begin with some research into noise ordinances before making any firm decision on the matter.


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