Despite Heated Debate, Nazareth Borough Council Approves Amended Noise Ordinance

In a 6 to 3 vote Monday night, Nazareth Borough Council updated and approved a noise ordinance that had council members debating to a boiling point.

While one council member believes the changes are aimed at the Internet Café and Deli at 6 S. Broad St., others believe the borough is simply cracking down.

Councilman Larry Stoudt was particularly animated about the money currently being spent and the dollars still to be spent on the ordinance.

“You’ve spent $365 to put a full-page ad in the [Nazareth] Key and $317 in the Home News, knowing that even if [the ordinance] passes, it is going to be very difficult to enforce. You’re then going to go out and spend a few hundred more dollars to buy a [decibel] meter,” Stoudt told council members.

Under the updated ordinance, a new decibel meter would be purchased for $179.99, according to Councilman Charles Donello.

But Stoudt was still upset with the cost, which will also involve training an officer to use the new meter. “Nobody can justify to me the spending of over $500 for an ordinance that we won’t be able to enforce,” he said.

Donello believes the borough has to start putting its foot down if it’s serious about .

“We tried to update the ordinance to help out our police department,” Donello said.

Stoudt disagrees.

“It was put together to put the screws to one business in town,” Stoudt said, referring to the Internet Café and Deli, which received multiple complaints from residents after holding open mic nights outdoors.

District Judge John Capobianco found owner Steve Nikles guilty of disorderly conduct in January. Nikles has appealed the ruling.

Nikles had brought up the outdated noise ordinance to council members in December, which prompted the updating of the ordinance.

A Few Things to Know:

• Any event sanctioned by the borough will not face penalties associated with noise complaints.
• If any animal or bird (owned by an individual) makes any continuous or persistent noise for a period of 15 minutes or more, or makes such noise intermittently for a period of 30 minutes or more, the owner of the animal can be fined.
• Power equipment, yelling, shouting, whistling, horns and signaling devices (except in an emergency), are prohibited at nighttime – 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. – if they cause a noise disturbance.
• Loudspeakers and sound amplifiers are now included in the new ordinance. They were not in the previous version.

Fines and Penalties:

• First Offense: $100 to $600 fine
• Second Offense: $300 to $600 fine
• Third Offense: $300 to $600 fine
• Fourth and Subsequent Offenses: $400 to $600 fine

* In any 120-day period
* If an individual fails to pay the fines, they shall be sentenced to jail for a term not to exceed 30 days for each offense.

Editor's Note: The full ordinance can be found in the Feb. 23 Nazareth Key, or by calling Nazareth Borough Hall at (610) 759-0202.