Town council not ready to lower the volume

Is this a tourist town or a retirement community?

Taking a “Can’t we all just get along” position, the Crested Butte Town Council is not going to tinker with the town’s noise ordinance.

Addressing a packed council chamber Monday evening, Mayor Alan Bernholtz concluded a 90-minute debate by asking the owners of The Pub to be good neighbors and turn the volume down if the neighbors complain about noise during music events, even if the establishment is within the noise level allowed by law. But the council was not ready to adjust the ordinance and reduce the allowed decibel levels.
Since opening in January, town marshals have responded to scores of noise complaints from residents living around Second Street and Elk Avenue about The Pub. The establishment has received two citations.
The discussion grew from a request last month by local residents to review the town noise ordinance passed last year. Several citizens said that when The Pub had music events, it was impossible to sleep. But the marshals would respond to the complaints and find the decibel levels were usually under 60, which is the legal limit after 10 p.m. in a commercial district.
At Monday’s meeting, representatives of several bars spoke in favor of not adjusting the noise ordinance.
One of the owners of The Pub, Chris Werderitch, said the marshals have come to the bar to discuss noise “50 or 60 times. It is getting out of hand,” he said. “We have our own decibel reader and most times our music is lower than the decibel reading of Coal Creek,” which runs behind The Pub.
Trey Lacy, another owner of The Pub, said the 60-decibel limit in the ordinance is about the same as other Colorado resort communities. He admitted that The Pub was in violation of the ordinance when it received its first citation. “We were definitely over and since then we have tried a number of things to reduce the noise coming out of the building,” he said. “We received the second citation when the marshals were called and they waited until the noise spiked to 62 one time. So they gave us a ticket. Since then, we’ve been quieter.”
Former Talk of the Town owner Bill Dickerson addressed the council. He said he didn’t understand “why someone who would be bothered by noise would move into the business district. That’s a mistake. And it’s not up to the council to fix other people’s mistakes.”
Dickerson also made the reduced sales tax argument. “If you change a law that seems to be working overall, it may keep some people away,” he said. “People come here to enjoy themselves and music is part of that. If less people come, sales tax will decrease and you’ll be shooting yourselves in the foot.”
Austin Hobday of The Pub agreed with Dickerson. “To change a law based on two people complaining could drive live music out of Crested Butte, and that’s not going to help the economy,” he said.
Matti Brown of Black Line Entertainment works many of the music events in Crested Butte. “It’s come down basically to harassment,” he told the council. “When I turn on my P.A. at that establishment, the police are there.”
Brown was speaking a bit loudly to the council and he told them his iPhone had a decibel reader application and he was speaking at 75 decibels. “There have been only two tickets issued,” he said. “We are all trying very hard to keep the sound levels down. But the town needs entertainment.”
Local gadfly Pete Giannini said that the viability of the core business district was an issue. “The B-1 zone of any town will be louder than other zones,” he said. “Anyone living in B-1 should expect to be subjected to more noise. There are trade-offs living in that area and increased noise is one of them. To make it harder for tourists to have fun is a mistake, especially in this economy.”
Property manager Gordon Reeves spoke for the owners of the building where The Pub is located. “I empathize and sympathize with the concerns,” he said. “Noise can annoy people. But the ordinance is in line with other towns. The council has a means to police the situation. Crested Butte is a tourist town and music provides part of the vibrancy of a tourist town. If Crested Butte wants to become a retirement community, fine.”
Jeff Hermanson brought the issue to the council last month. He is the owner of the Penelope’s project located just west of The Pub. “I think Crested Butte would be a great retirement community,” he quipped. “There is a distinction between vibrancy and nuisance. I want The Pub and the town to prosper but not at the expense of the neighbors. One consideration this green council should consider is that noise is a pollutant. There needs to be mutual respect between neighbors. I ask that you lower the acceptable decibel level in the commercial zone.”
Priscila Banks lives in the residential unit at the Penelope’s project. “I’m a partier,” she admitted. “But I can’t sleep through this and I can sleep through anything. When the town allowed a residence in that area, it has the responsibility to make sure that a person can sleep in that residence.”
Cricket Farrington owns the building across Coal Creek from The Pub. She, too, has been a critic of the noise ordinance. “I can’t sleep in my own home,” she said. “I too own a business and I won’t be able to rent my spaces if the noise continues like it is. Noise isn’t the only way to have fun. In fact, I’ll bet if you lowered the decibels, people inside wouldn’t even notice it. I’d ask the council to treat all business owners with the same amount of support. I’m a business owner and I don’t impinge on the neighbors. We all have to work together and look for some balance.”
Resident Mike Johnson struck a chord with the council. He has had similar issues with bars in the 200 block of Elk Avenue. “The ordinance you passed is a good ordinance but the responsibility lies with the establishment creating the noise,” he said. “The ordinance has the capacity to deal with the issue. My point is there is a need to work civilly together and enforce the ordinance.”
The council members were reluctant to reduce the decibels allowed in the ordinance. “I am troubled by the neighbors fighting,” said councilman Skip Berkshire. “There are at least 10 establishments in town that provide music and one is standing out right now. It’s really about being a good neighbor. I have a hard time believing we need to soften this. When someone has repeated offenses, they really need to fix the problem. After 20 visits by the marshals, they should fix the problem. I’d like to see the problem get fixed without us doing anything. It’s up to the proprietors. Either do a better job of soundproofing or turn it down.”
Bernholtz jumped on that bandwagon. “Can’t we all just get along?” he asked. “We have an ordinance in place and there are good arguments on both sides. Maybe The Pub can just turn it down a little bit. Who wants to be harassed all the time? This is turning into a feud. The Pub needs to make it work out. Be the business that can work with its neighbors. Let’s make it work this summer. Now, go have a group hug out in the hallway.”
No one on the council suggested reworking the noise ordinance, so the discussion ended with no change on the horizon.
While there was continued discussion in the hallway between both camps, there was no group hug.