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ORD 673 04/26/2005 ORDINANCE NO. 6 7 3 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF CIBOLO, TEXAS, PROVIDING REGULATIONS REGARDING UNLAWFUL INTENSIFIED OR AMPLIFIED NOISES; DECLARING NOISE NUISANCES; PROVIDING A PENALTY NOT TO EXCEED FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($500.00) FOR VIOLATIONS; PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE IS CUMULATIVE OF ALL OTHER ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF CIBOLO; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING SAVINGS; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City of Cibolo, Texas, is a Home Rule Municipality located in Guadalupe County, Texas, created in accordance with provisions of the Texas Local Government Code and operating pursuant to its adopted City Charter and all applicable laws and enabling legislation of the State of Texas; and WHEREAS, the City of Cibolo, Texas, is governed by a Home Rule Charter that was approved by the Citizens of Cibolo in a duly called election held on September 11, 2004; and WHEREAS, the City of Cibolo, Texas, is a home rule municipality empowered under the Texas Local Government Code, Section 51.001, to adopt an ordinance or rule that is for the protection of the health, safety and welfare of its citizens; and WHEREAS, Section 217.042 of the Texas Local Government Code authorizes a home rule municipality to define and prohibit nuisances; and WHEREAS, the City Council has considered the merits of this ordinance to establish regulations regarding unlawful intensified or amplified noises and has determined that this ordinance is necessary to protect the health, safety, morals, and welfare of the community. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CIBOLO, TEXAS... SECTION 1. INCORPORATION That the above and foregoing premises are true and correct and are incorporated herein and made part hereof for all purposes. 1 SECTION 2. ADOPTION That the Ordinance provisions incorporated in Section 3 herein are hereby adopted by the City Council of the City of Cibolo, Texas. SECTION 3. PROVISIONS 1. NOISE — CHARACTER, INTENSITY AND DURATION DETRIMENTAL TO HEALTH OR LIFE — It shall be unlawful for any person to make or cause to be made noise of such character, intensity and duration as to be detrimental to the life or health of any individual in the City of Cibolo. 2. NOISE—UNREASONABLE, LOUD, DISTURBING AND UNNECESSARY— It shall be unlawful for any person to make, continue, or cause to be made any excessive, unreasonable, loud, disturbing and unnecessary or unusually loud noise, or any noise which either annoys, disturbs, injures or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace, and safety of others in the City of Cibolo. This encompasses any noise that is offensive to the ordinary sensibilities of the inhabitants of the City of Cibolo, which noise renders the enjoyment of life or property uncomfortable, or interferes with public peace and comfort. 3. NOISE—ENUMERATION—The following acts, among others, are declared to be nuisances and shall be deemed to be a violation of this Ordinance, but said enumerations shall not be deemed to be exclusive,to-wit: a. The sounding of any horn or signal device on any automobile,motorcycle,bus or other vehicle while not in motion, except as a danger signal, as may be required by State law, if another vehicle is approaching apparently out of control or if another vehicle is backing, starting or turning in such a way as likely to cause a collision. b. The sounding of any horn or signal device on any automobile, motorcycle,bus or other vehicle while in motion, except as a danger signal, as required by State law. c. The playing of any radio, phonograph, television set or musical instrument in such a manner, or with such volume as to disturb the peace, quiet, comfort or repose of persons in any dwelling, apartment, hotel or other type of residential structure. d. The use of any automobile, motorcycle, bus or vehicle so out of repair or so loaded as to emit or create loud or unnecessary grating, grinding or rattling noise(s). 2 e. The construction, erection, including excavation, demolition, alteration, repair or related work for any building, structure, or site location in a residential zoning district or non-residential zoning district abutting a residential zoning district, excluding any inside work done in an enclosed building or structure in non-residential zoning districts, other than: between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. during the weekdays of Monday through Saturday and between the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, except in the case of urgent necessity in the interest of public safety, for which a permit shall be obtained from the Chief Building Official or his/her designee. The hours set forth will encompass schools and public locations in general, however there may be more restrictive hours imposed by the City as deemed appropriate. f. The delivery, unloading, or depositing of concrete, lumber, dirt, base, or any construction materials for any site location, building or structure in a residential zoning district or non-residential zoning district abutting a residential zoning district, other than: between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. during the weekdays of Monday through Saturday and between the hours of 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Sunday, except in the case of urgent necessity in the interest of public safety, for which a permit shall be obtained from the Chief Building Official or his/her designee. The hours set forth will encompass schools and public locations in general, however there may be more restrictive hours imposed by the City as deemed appropriate. g. The use or operation of any mechanical or electrical device, machine, apparatus, or instrument that will intensify, amplify or reproduce the voice or any other sound whereby the sound is plainly audible to adjacent private property or for fifty (50) feet onto public property or any public road right-of- way. h. The use of any drum, loudspeaker or other instrument or device for the purpose of attracting attention by the creation of noise to any performance, show, sale, display of merchandise or to attract customers to any place of business. i. The creation of unreasonably loud, disturbing and unnecessary noises in connection with the loading or unloading of any vehicle, the opening and destruction of bales, boxes, crates and containers or the sounding of any bell or gong attached to any building located on any premises that disturbs the quiet or repose of persons occupying adjoining property or those occupying property across a public road right-of-way, alley or other public right-of-way, and within a two-hundred(200)foot radius. 3 4. NOISE — EXEMPTIONS — The following activities are exempt from this Ordinance: a. Sound caused by emergency or public service work, including police, fire and public utility operations, when the sound is associated with the performance of lawful duties to protect the health, safety or welfare of the community. b. Amplifiers used on vehicles to attract patrons that are operated by ice cream and snow-cone vendors that produce jingles or music from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. However, such amplified jingles or music shall not be done in a loud manner so as to be offensive to the ordinary sensibilities or a reasonable and prudent person. c. The use and operation of an amplified, mechanical bell system in connection with the use and occupancy of a church structure, school structure, educational structure, or governmental structure. However, such systems shall not be used or operated in a manner so as to be offensive to the ordinary sensibilities of a reasonable and prudent person. d. Sound caused by agricultural work when the sound is associated with the care, maintenance and harvest of crops and livestock. e. Individuals possessing an authorized permit from the City such as a special event or parade permit shall be allowed to engage in activity authorized by the permit. Under no circumstances should the amplification of sound be in a manner that is offensive to the ordinary sensibilities of a reasonable and prudent person or in such a manner as to interfere with the public peace and comfort. SECTION 4. PENALTY Any person violating any of the provisions of this Ordinance or failing to observe any of the provisions hereof, upon conviction shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined, except as otherwise provided herein, in a sum not to exceed five hundred ($500.00) dollars for each offense, and a separate offense shall be deemed committed upon each time during or on which a violation occurs or continues. SECTION 5. CUMULATIVE CLAUSE That this ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of the City of Cibolo, Texas, except where the provisions of this Ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such Ordinances, in which event the more restrictive provision shall apply. 4 SECTION 6. SEVERABILITY That it is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council of the City of Cibolo that the phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, and sections of this Ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this Ordinance should be declared unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs or sections of this Ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without incorporation in this Ordinance of any such unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence,paragraph or section. SECTION 7. SAVINGS That all rights and privileges of the City of Cibolo are expressly saved as to any and all violations of the provisions of any Ordinances affecting the generation of noise, which have accrued at the time of theeffective date of this Ordinance; and, as to such accrued violations and all pending litigation, both civil and criminal, whether pending in court or not, under such Ordinances, same shall not be affected by this Ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts. SECTION 8. EFFECTIVE DATE That this Ordinance shall become effective at 12:00 a.m. on May 1, 2005. AND IT IS SO ORDAINED. PASSED AND APPROVED by a vote of 5 for to Pl against this 26th day of April, 2005. APPROVED: Mayor Charles Ruppert ) ST: / Yv il e Griffin, City Secrit. T 5