Moscow noise ordinance goes to vote Monday

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Story Published: Dec 14, 2007 at 9:18 PM PDT

Story Updated: Dec 14, 2007 at 9:18 PM PDT

By Matt Loveless

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MOSCOW - They're trying to keep things quiet in Moscow. The city council is going to vote for the last time on the Noise Ordinance Modification Monday.

That's the latest controversial piece of local legislation that would allow police officers to cite people at their own discretion for what's being called "loud, unnecessary or unusual noise."

That would affect people like 36-year-old Moscow Resident Garrett Clevenger.

"My concern on this is that I'm a musician and I have band practice here; my neighbors have never complained," said Clevenger. "They've actually said open the window when we play. They like our music. Now, I have to live with a law that represses my freedom of expression. I just think that since I'm not a problem, why should I be subject to this law."

Clevenger is at the forefront of the fight against the ordinance modification. As the ordinance is currently written, many factors go into handing out citations for noise. First, it must come from a complaint of someone, with quote - normal sensitivities. It depends on the nature or zoning of the land the noise is coming from, the time of day it happens, the duration of the sound, and whether the sound is recurrent, intermittent, or constant. The purpose of the change is to decrease the "party house" atmosphere in the college town.

"It seems that if they're going to write laws, they should be targeting the problem, not sweeping it under everybody, particularly where we're talking about our first amendment right," said Clevenger.

Clevenger said he has no problem with an ordinance if it has certain parameters, like decibel levels or time of day. Whether you want to cut down on party noise or keep sole discretion out of police hands, you'll have one more chance to voice your opinion. Clevenger said he'll be at Monday's city council meeting.

"Unfortunately, the last vote is happening when many people are out of town," he said. "Most of the students left, many of the people have gone on holiday, so I imagine many of the people aren't going to be around."

Citizens are of course encouraged to express the concerns for or against the ordinance. The vote will take place at 7:00 p.m. at the Moscow City Hall.

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