City Safe and Civil Program reminds residents to Lower the Boooom!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 5, 2010

For more information, please contact:
Beverly Calender-Anderson, Safe and Civil City Program Director, City of Bloomington, 349.3560
Jared Schlemmer, Assistant Deputy Mayor, City of Bloomington, 349.3406, schlemmj@bloomington.in.gov

Bloomington, IN -- As the new academic year begins and new students begin classes, the City of Bloomington would like to remind all citizens of the noise ordinance.

The City of Bloomington noise ordinance is enforced 24 hours a day. Quiet Nights and Lower the Boooom are two City of Bloomington initiatives developed to create community standards concerning noise. Quiet Nights is a program enforcing the level of fixed-source or stationary noise and Lower the Boooom reminds drivers of boom cars to lower their auto-stereo volume and provides information concerning the health and safety risks involved with the utilization of boom speakers. Additional information about these two initiatives can be found at www.bloomington.in.gov/noise.

Generally, unreasonable noise is defined as sound that is of a volume, frequency or pattern that prevents, disrupts, injures or endangers the health, safety, welfare, prosperity, comfort or repose of reasonable persons of ordinary sensitivities within the city of Bloomington, given the time of day or environment in which the sound is made. It is important to note that a first time offender of the noise ordinance, at the police officer's discretion, may receive a warning. If a citation is issued, it carries a fine of $50. The fine for a second citation is $100 and the third and all subsequent violations within a calendar year carry fines of $500 each. Citations for noise are issued to the offender and may be issued for noise emanating from a residence or vehicle.

Besides the disturbance that noise causes to neighbors and fellow drivers, increased levels of vehicular noise adversely affects the hearing of listeners and makes it impossible to hear and respond to pedestrians and emergency vehicles such as police, ambulances or fire engines.

Noise complaints may be reported to the Bloomington Police Department using the non-emergency telephone number, 339-4477. To report recurring vehicular noise from boom cars, Bloomington residents can call the Safe and Civil City hotline at 355-7777 or email concerns to noise@bloomington.in.gov.

Additional questions regarding the City of Bloomington Noise Ordinance can be referred to the City of Bloomington Legal Department at 349-3426 or legal@bloomington.in.gov.

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