TO STAR: Stores may have to crank it down (*warning* annoying news ahead!!)
i'm suprised that jayx1 hasn't posted this one up yet, but i guess he's been away lately.
i think this latest proposal is rediculous. i mean seriously it seems like City Council is riding the slipery slope of the club noise complaints issue. where do you draw the line?
sometimes you really have to wonder what Toronto City Council really does for its people? They seem more concerned about finding things that you can't do, rather than helping to create things that you CAN do. don't these people have better things to do with their time? honestly there have got to be more pressing issues on the priority list right now. i'm sorry but i just found this last piece of news to be pretty irritating.
soon Toronto will be known as the quietest city on earth.
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Stores may have to crank it down
City committee wants music restricted
Urges hiring of 4 enforcement officers
Sep. 6, 2006. 05:37 AM
VANESSA LU
CITY HALL BUREAU CHIEF
If the music or noise from a patio or business is loud enough to be heard on the street, the City of Toronto might soon be issuing fines.
Under a proposed ban, if sound coming from a loudspeaker or stereo can be heard on streets or in public places, it would violate the noise bylaw.
To ensure compliance, the plan — which was approved yesterday by the planning and transportation committee — calls for the hiring of four full-time enforcement officers. The budget for the officers, plus administrative costs, is estimated at $340,000 next year.
"Historically, the City of Toronto did not allow loudspeakers, but we did look the other way if it wasn't too loud," said Councillor Kyle Rae (Ward 27, Toronto Centre-Rosedale).
"But there are problems. Staff will crank up the music when the owners are away," he said. "Neighbours are just fed up with it. There has to be a balance."
In addition, Rae said businesses have been increasingly using loudspeakers to lure shoppers inside — a constant din that can be irritating for passersby.
Business owners on Yonge St., where numerous stores use such loudspeakers, weren't impressed, and they almost unanimously condemned the plan as another hare-brained idea out of city hall.
The noise isn't terribly loud. But it's not just the mom-and-pop stores that use music; even the big players on the street, like Sears, the Bay and HMV, play music that can clearly be heard along the sidewalk through speakers.
"They (city hall) should worry about other stuff," said Erwin Calderon, manager of Champs Sports near Dundas St.
Calderon said nobody has ever complained about the music, which helps attract customers.
Harsher criticism came from Maureen Wright, owner of the Leather Ranch, one of the oldest retail stores on Yonge St.
"I'm sorry, but there are higher priorities than this," Wright said, describing how the rock music she plays often makes passersby dance or sing.
Music blaring on the street was a trademark of Yonge St. in the 1970s and '80s, she added.
But how the bylaw could be enforced is anybody's guess. At the corner of Yonge and Dundas, the music from Sears collided with music from a T-Shirt seller and the boom box of sidewalk chalk artist Dave Johnston.
As the 36-year-old took a break from his drawings of superheroes, he described the planned bylaw as "trippy."
"This is a city of two million people. There's going to be noise," he said. "If you don't like it, move to some place quiet like Ottawa."
This move comes after growing complaints from residents about noise, especially coming from nightclubs and restaurants late at night.
Under the proposed bylaw, which goes before city council for approval later this month, an enforcement officer walking by and hearing loud music or noise would be able to issue a ticket.
Currently, complainants are required to testify on the impact of the noise and that they were disturbed.
Frank Weinstock, manager of the policy and business planning unit for the city's municipal licensing and standards department, said it shouldn't be difficult for officers to ticket violators.
"If officers are out there and hear it, they can deal with it," Weinstock said. "If you're standing on the street and you hear it, that's all you need."
The city defines loudspeaker or amplified sound to include sounds from CD players, stereos, radios and even people making announcements.
Although the committee voted yesterday in favour of the loudspeaker ban, it refused to extend throughout the city a restriction on construction noise on Sundays and holidays that applies only to low-rise residential areas.
Councillor Howard Moscoe (Ward 15, Eglinton-Lawrence) said he was disappointed that the committee would discriminate against those who live in highrise neighbourhoods.
City staff said extending the ban could have a negative economic impact, creating delays in completing projects and raising the cost of building.
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source:
http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/Co...id=968332188492
how often do you hear about the City being cash strapped when it comes to funding public works or maybe the TTC. yet they can somehow find $340,000 a year for 4 noise enforcement officers??
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Palm Trees > Pine Trees , Sand > Snow
Last edited by dEsidEL on Sep-07-2006 at 04:36
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