Correspondence from Resident RE: SUGGESTED AMENDMENT TO BYLAW NO. 523

RE: SUGGESTED AMENDMENT TO BYLAW NO. 523

Dear View Royal Mayor and Town Council Members,

To begin, I would like to thank you for your time. At your next town council meeting, I hope you will consider my concerns and suggestions related to View Royal’s Bylaw No. 523 that I have outlined in this letter.

As the Greater Victoria Region continues to grow, so too does the population and infrastructure of the town of View Royal. Within this expanding community, it is important to establish a framework of rules or bylaws that is fair and comprehensible to maintain peace and order. Currently, BYLAW NO. 523 is not as clear or accurate as it could be, causing conflict between neighbours as they come to their own, often opposing, interpretations of the bylaw. To respect your time, this letter will focus on the analysis of only two subsections of Bylaw No. 523- 3(i) and 3(ii)-as these sections outline general noise regulations that I feel have the biggest impact on the greatest number of residents.

First, a general statement about noise/sound disturbing the peace is included in View Royal’s Bylaw No. 523 section 3(i):

“No person shall make or cause to be made any noise or sound in or on a highway or elsewhere in the Town which disturb, or tend to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort, or convenience of the neighborhood, or of person in the vicinity, or which the Council believes are objectionable or liable to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort or convenience of individuals or the public.”

As you can see, section 3(i) does not include details about (un)allowable times for the production of noise/sound. By comparison, Esquimalt’s Bylaw No 2826, section 2 includes detailed times and days of the week that noise/sound is not allowed when it clearly states:

“For greater certainty, no person shall make, cause, allow or permit a noise or sound which disturbs or tends to disturb or is likely to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort, or convenience of persons in the neighbourhood or vicinity, between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.on a Monday to Friday, and between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. on a Saturday, Sunday or Holiday.”

View Royal Town Council could amend Bylaw No. 523 to include specific times and days where general “disturbing” noise or sound is not permitted, in a similar way to our neighbouring community, Esquimalt.

Additionally, View Royal’s Bylaw No. 523, section 3(ii) does not mention specific time(s) that one can/cannot play or operate a radio or other sound amplifying apparatus:

View Royal’s Bylaw No. 523, section 3(ii): “No person shall play or operate any radio, tape recorder, audio playback machine, stereophonic equipment or other instrument or any apparatus for the production or amplification of sound in or on private premises, or in or on any public place in such a manner as to disturb the quiet, peace, rest, enjoyment, comfort, or convenience of any person or persons on the same piece of property or in the neighborhood or vicinity.”

However, the noise regulations for the municipalities of Colwood and Langford clearly outline when a radio or sound amplifying instrument cannot be played:

Colwood, Bylaw No.1594: “Playing or operating any radio, stereophonic equipment, television receiving set or other instrument or any apparatus for the production or amplification of sound, where the noise or sound is audible at a point of reception in a residential area between the hours of 11:00 p.m. one day and 9:00 a.m. the following day.”

City of Langford, Bylaw No. 2056, section 5.1 a: “The playing or operating of any radio, television, or other instrument or any apparatus for the production or amplification of sound, where the noise or sound is clearly audible at a Point of Reception in a residential area between the hours of 11:00 PM. one day and 9:00 AM the following day.”

My point is that more clarity is needed around when radios and sound amplifying devices are/are not allowed to be played; amending the bylaw with specific times and days, would help residents negotiate this potential issue.

Then, referring once more to section 3(i), perhaps the council might discuss omitting the phrase “which the Council believes are objectionable or liable…” as it is potentially misleading and unrealistic. You see, unless a representative from the council is willing and available to assess and implement noise or sound production on the evenings and weekends, this statement does not hold weight. Indeed, I understand that View Royal’s noise bylaw officer is not available to assess noise disturbances on evenings or weekends. In fact, I was advised by staff at the View Royal bylaw office to call the police when my neighbour was being disruptive in the evenings and on weekends. While the noise this individual makes is definitely disruptive and persistent, it is not excessive enough that I would feel comfortable contacting the police to intervene. In my opinion, it is best to add more details to Bylaw No. 523 about excessive noise and (un)allowable times to play sound devices so that neighbours can use it as a reference guide as a first step to resolving their own conflicts and avoid wasting city police resources.

Indeed, the “devil is in the details'' when it comes to bylaw regulations and conflict resolution. This is the case when we consider the location from which the noise/sound is heard by the complainant. To revisit View Royal’s noise bylaw section 3(i) it reads “No person shall make…noise…to disturb…person in the vicinity”. Considering grammatical meaning and usage which I will not detail here, perhaps another phrase, one used by a few other municipalities, might be more appropriate and accurate for this purpose. For instance, Victoria’s noise bylaw states ”where the noise is clearly audible at a Point of Reception”. On the other hand, I noticed that a couple of municipalities have outlined very specific noise maximums where a noise must be measured with an approved sound meter. For various reasons, I feel it would be a mistake to move in that extreme direction when it comes to noise level assessment. Considering these points, the term “Point of Reception” is not only a more accurate phrase to include in section 3(i), but also a more accessible one with realistic application. In other words, it is user friendly.

As a resident of View Royal, I have personally encountered issues related to noise with a neighbour for years. I have approached this person on numerous occasions to say that the noise they are making on their patio (e.g. talking loudly with friends while listening to the radio) is disruptive to my household. The noise often continues past 11:30 pm and, on occasion past midnight, often on consecutive weekday nights. However, we can’t seem to resolve the conflict between us, in part because this individual does not feel I have a right to ask them to be quiet after a certain time when there are no specific time parameters included in the noise bylaw for View Royal. The lack of success I have experienced trying to use View Royal’s Bylaw No, 523 to help resolve the ongoing noise conflict with my neighbour has led me to the realization that this bylaw is too vague to be effective for the town’s constituents. With the continuous growth of View Royal, there will inevitably be a rise in similar issues pitting neighbour against neighbour. Constituents deserve a noise bylaw that acts as a guide to help them begin to resolve such issues.

To conclude, I am asking View Royal’s town council members to amend Bylaw No. 523 to:

• include an (un)allowable time frame for noise/sound 7 days per week,
• delete the statement that Council will determine if a noise/sound is disruptive, and
• change the term “in the vicinity” to the more accurate phrase “Point of Reception”.

These edits to the bylaw would surely provide more clarity and improve relations between neighbours, reduce inquiries and complaints to the town’s bylaw office, and ensure police resources are available for more emergent situations. It is my hope that the points I have made about amending Bylaw No. 523 will be considered by View Royal Mayor and Town Council. Once again, thank you for your time.

Respectfully,