RESOLUTION NO. 11-38, 2011
COLUMBIA TOWNSHIP, HAMILTON COUNTY, OHIO


A RESOLUTION ADOPTING REGULATIONS PROHIBITING EXCESSIVE NOISE AND ORDERING NOTICE

WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of Columbia Township finds that it is in the best interest of Columbia Township to prevent excessive noise and to provide tranquility and public peace in its neighborhoods and business communities; and

WHEREAS, excessive noise from including, but not limited to, sound generating or amplifying devices is a nuisance and serious hazard to the public health, welfare and safety and the quality of life; and

WHEREAS, Columbia Township has the authority to regulate such matters pursuant to R.C. §505.17, 505.172, 4513.221 and 505.14;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Board of Trustees of Columbia Township, Hamilton County, Ohio, that:

1. The regulation governing excessive noise, a copy of which is attached hereto as Exhibit “A” and made a part of this Resolution, is hereby adopted.

2. The Fiscal Officer is directed to keep the regulation available for public inspection and copying at the office of the Board of Trustees.

3. The Fiscal Officer is further directed to cause the following notice to be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the Township, within ten (10) days after the date of this Resolution:

The Board of Trustees of Columbia Township, Hamilton County, Ohio has adopted a regulation prohibiting excessive noise. Such regulation is available to the public for inspection and copying at the office of the Board at 5686 Kenwood Road, Cincinnati, OH 45227.

4. The regulation takes effect fifteen (15) days after the date of this Resolution, unless a sufficient petition is timely filed requesting the Board to submit the same to the electors for approval or rejection, as provided by Ohio Revised Code Section 503.41.
EXHIBIT A

NOISE CONTROL REGULATIONS

A. REGULATION OF NOISE AT D PERMIT LIQUOR ESTABLISHMENTS OR OTHER PREMISES THAT ARE WITHIN ANY AREAS ZONED FOR RESIDENTIAL USE
(1) No person shall generate or permit to be generated unreasonable noise or loud
sound which is likely to cause inconvenience or annoyance to persons of ordinary
sensibilities at any premises to which a D permit has been issued by the Division
of Liquor Control or that is within any areas zoned for residential use by means of:
(a) Any radio, television, phonograph, tape player, record player, bullhorn,
loudspeaker, stereo system speaker, music player, computer, digital tape player,
digital video disc player, compact disc, audio system, musical instrument amplifier, any machine or device which produces sound received through or from any form of broadcast, or any form of machine or device which reproduces sound which is
recorded on any form of medium.

(2) No person, being the owner, person in possession, or person in control of such
premises by reason of employment, agency or otherwise, whether such ownership, possession or control is exclusive or joint, shall permit a violation of this section.

(3) This section shall not apply to the following:
(a) Any business or industry, except any business operating at any premises to which a D permit has been issued by the Division of Liquor Control, in existence and operating on or before November 1, 2011. This section shall, however, apply to any new operation or expansion of that business or industry which results in substantially increased noise levels from those generated by that business or industry on November 1, 2011.
(b) Any person who engages in any of the activities described in section 1.61 (“Agriculture” defined), if the noise is attributed to an activity described in section 1.61 of the Revised Code.
(c) Any person who engages in coal mining and reclamation operations, as defined in division (B) of section 1513.01 of the Revised Code, or surface mining, as defined in division (A) of section 1514.01 of the Revised Code, if the noise is attributed to coal mining and reclamation or surface mining activities.
(d) Any person who engages in the drilling, completion, operation, maintenance, or construction of any crude oil or natural gas wells or pipelines or any appurtenances to those wells or pipelines or from the distribution, transportation, gathering, or storage of crude oil or natural gas.

(4) Whoever violates this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor, and is subject to
civil fine not to exceed one hundred and fifty dollars ($150.00) for the first conviction. For
a second or subsequent conviction by the same offender, the offender shall be
fined not less than two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00) and not more than one
thousand dollars ($1,000.00). Fines levied and collected under this section shall
be paid into the township general revenue fund.

(5) Any person allegedly aggrieved by another person’s violation of this section may
seek in a civil action a declaratory judgment, an injunction, or other appropriate
relief against the other person for committing the act or practice that violates this
section. The court involved in the civil action may award to the prevailing party
reasonable attorney’s fees limited to the work reasonably performed.

B. REGULATION OF VEHICLE AND ENGINE NOISE

(1) In the unincorporated area of the township, the following activities, with respect
to passenger cars, motorcycles, or other devices using internal combustion
engines, are prohibited:
(a) Operating or causing to be operated any motor vehicle, agricultural tractor, motorcycle, all-purpose vehicle, or snowmobile not equipped with a factory-installed muffler or equivalent muffler in good working order;
(b) Removing or rendering inoperative, or causing to be removed or rendered inoperative, other that for purposes of maintenance, repair, or replacement, of any muffler;
(c) Discharging the exhaust of any stationary or portable internal combustion engine into the air, except through a factory-installed muffler or equivalent muffler in good working order and in constant operation;
(d) Racing the motor of any vehicle described in division 1(a) of this section in such a manner that the exhaust system emits a loud, cracking, or chattering noise unusual to its normal operation.

(2) Whoever violates any maximum noise limit established as provided in division (1)
of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor, and is subject to civil fine not to exceed one hundred and fifty dollars ($150.00) for the first conviction. For a second or subsequent conviction by the same offender, the offender shall be fined not less than two hundred and fifty dollars ($250.00) and not more than one thousand dollars ($1000.00). Fines collected under this section by the township shall be paid into the township general fund.

C. EXCESSIVE NOISE
(1) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following terms shall be defined as follows:
(a) “Sound generating or sound amplifying device” means any radio, television, phonograph, tape player, bullhorn, loudspeaker, stereo system speaker, music player, computer, digital tape player, disc player, digital video disc player, audio system, musical instrument amplifier, musical instrument, any machine or device which produces sound receive through or from any form of broadcast, or any form of medium.
(b) “Motor vehicle” includes not only motor vehicles, but also emergency vehicles, public safety vehicles, school buses, commercial tractor, agricultural tractor, truck, bus, trailer as defined in R.C. 4511.01.
(c) “Sound” includes any kind of humanly audible stimulus and, with respect to musical sound, includes not only the vocalized work but includes the musical treble and bass components of such music and the audible response the existence of each produces.

(2) No owner of a motor vehicle, operator of a motor vehicle or person in physical control of a motor vehicle shall recklessly play, cause to be played, or permit to be played any sound-generating or sound-amplifying device located within or upon such motor vehicle at such a level, volume, frequency, or intensity that the sound emitted exceeds the capacity of such motor vehicle to fully absorb, insulate, deaden, shield, or muffle the sound being emitted so that such sound is inaudible to persons located outside of the motor vehicle in which the sound-generating or sound-amplifying device is located.

(3) Exemptions. This section shall not apply to:
(a) Sound generated by automobile alarm devices for and during such a reasonable period as is necessary to permit the owner to silence the device without danger of attack or injury, or to obtain the assistance of public safety officials, whichever period is shorter;
(b) Sound caused by motor vehicle collisions, loss of control of a motor vehicle or sudden or severe application of the brakes of a motor vehicle;
(c) Sound resulting from damage caused by a motor vehicle collision which cannot be silenced because of damage done in the collision;
(d) Sound created by a motor vehicle or an emergency vehicle, when engaged in responding to an emergency; and while at the scene of an emergency, or when testing their equipment;
(e) Sound resulting from any repair or restoration work upon a motor vehicle;
(f) Sound resulting from any work required to protect persons or property from an exposure to danger;
(g) Sound emanating directly from a motor vehicle engine;
(h) Sound caused by contact between any part of a motor vehicle and the traveled portion of the roadway.

(4) No person shall generate or permit to be generated unreasonable noise or loud sound which is likely to cause inconvenience or annoyance to persons of ordinary sensibilities, by means of:
(a) Any radio, phonograph, television, tape, record, or disc player, bullhorn, loudspeaker, stereo system speaker, music player, computer, digital tape player, digital video disc player, audio system, musical instrument amplifier, musical instrument, any machine or device which produces sound received through or from any form of broadcast or any form of machine or device which reproduces sound which is recorded on any form of medium.
(b) Any engine or machine necessary for the operation of any passenger car, motorcycle, school bus, commercial tractor, agricultural tractor, truck, bus, or trailer as defined in Ohio Revised Code 4511.01.

(5) It is prima-facie unlawful for a person to generate or permit to be generated sound by the devices or instruments described in subsection (a) hereof in the following circumstances:
(a) On private property between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. of the following day in a predominantly residential area, regardless of an existing nonconforming use or variance, where the sound is audible more than eighty feet from the property line of the property on which the source of the sound is located;
(b) On a street or highway or in the public right of way where the sound is audible 100 feet from the device generating the sound.

(6) No person, being the owner of a premises, a person in possession of a premises, or a person in control of a premises by reason of employment, agency or otherwise, whether such ownership, possession or control exclusive or joint, shall permit a violation of this section.

(7) Persons in possession of a current parade or block party permit issued by or any event sponsored by the Columbia Board of Trustees are exempt from the provisions of this section.

(8) Whoever violates this section is subject to civil fine not to exceed one hundred and fifty dollars ($150.00). For a second or subsequent violation by the same offender, the offender shall be fined not less than two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) and not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00). Fines collected under this section by the township shall be paid into the general fund.