The Municipality of Lakeshore has announced the start of a comprehensive review of its Noise By-law, which officials say will help bring the by-law in line with current needs and provide community members a better understanding of how the by-law may affect them.
Lakeshore is considering the use of decibel limits for specific categories of sound, an effort aimed at providing clarity and ensuring compliance with noise restrictions.
With proposed decibel limits, officials say officers responding to noise complaints would use decibel measurement devices to determine if a noise contravenes the Noise By-law.
In Ontario, municipalities have the authority to create and enforce by-laws that control or prevent noise disturbances.
Officials are inviting community members to an open house at the Atlas Tube Recreation Centre on Thursday, August 17, 2023, from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. to provide feedback and learn more.
Mayor Tracey Bailey says their current by-law was passed in 2007 and hasn't been updated since, and when noise becomes excessive it can impact the quality of life for residents and visitors.
"I think all residents understand that there's some level of noise that's part of every day life, but residents are bringing forward some concern about loud music. Sometimes in the summertime it's more common for noise complaints to come in, as well as cars, we've seen that kind of across the province where the noise from cars has been increasing."
Bailey says residents sharing their feedback will help council understand the impact of excessive noise on community members and where they stand on potential regulations.
"Community feedback is critical for council to understand how the community is feeling about noise, and helps us make informed decisions. So we really want to hear from residents, and we want to ensure that residents have their say. It's going to touch on things like resident's experience, specific concerns related to noise, and knowledge of or any feedback on current regulations."
She says the by-law is seriously out of date, and needs some fine tuning.
"There's a few things in it that raise some questions certainly. All by-laws should be reviewed and brought up the date on a regular basis. But I believe this noise by-law has something in it that prohibits whistling in public, so it is certainly one that needs to be reviewed."
Residents can also provide feedback by filling out a survey online on Lakeshore's website.
The brief survey asks for feedback on concerns related to noise, current regulations, and options for temporary exemptions.
Submissions will be accepted until the end of August.
- with files from AM800's Dustin Coffman