AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE NOISE CONTROL OF THE TOWN OF CHAPEL HILL TO RESTRICT THE USE OF LEAF BLOWERS AND OTHER MOTORIZED LANDSCAPE EQUIPMENT (2005-06-15/O-4)

BE IT ORDAINED by the Council of the Town of Chapel Hill as follows:

Section 1.  Sec. 11-40, paragraph (j) is hereby revised to read as follows:

            “(j) Lawn mowers, agricultural equipment, and landscape maintenance equipment used between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. weekdays and 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on weekends; providing all equipment is operated in accord with the manufacturer's standard mufflers and noise-reducing equipment in use; and is in proper operating condition. When practical, such equipment shall be located so as to minimize the noise impact on surrounding residences.  Reserved.”

Section 2.  A new Sec. 11-40.1 is hereby added to read as follows:

“Sec. 11-40.1.  Regulations applicable to leaf blowers and other motorized agricultural and landscape maintenance equipment.

Leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other motorized agricultural and landscape maintenance equipment shall be subject to the following regulations:

(a) Leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other motorized agricultural and landscape maintenance machinery shall be operated only with all manufacturer-supplied emission control devices and noise muffling equipment in proper working order.

(b) Leaf blowers, lawn mowers and other motorized agricultural and landscape maintenance machinery may be used during the following time periods based on the zoning designation of the property and contiguous property:

a. On property zoned one of the Residential zoning classifications under the Town’s Land Use Management Ordinance (R-6, R-5, R-4, R-3, R-2, R-2A, R-1, R-1A, R-LD-1, and R-LD-5), and on parts of any property not so zoned but contiguous to property carry such designation, within 100 feet of the residentially zoned property, such equipment may only be operated between the hours of 8 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday and between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

b. On property zoned for any other purpose not meeting the contiguity standard in (a), said equipment may only be operated between the hours of 4 a.m. and 9 p.m.  Monday through Friday and between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (b), the Town Manager is authorized to direct the use by Town staff and Town agents of such motorized machinery at other hours when such use is necessary to clean or restore public properties following scheduled or unscheduled special events.

(d) Leaf blowers, lawn mowers and any other motorized agricultural and landscape maintenance machinery shall be operated and controlled by the handler so that the decibel level generated by said equipment does not exceed 65 dBa when measured, off of the premises where the equipment is used, at a distance of 50 feet from the location of use. Equipment that would otherwise exceed this standard shall be operated at a reduced intensity in order to meet this standard when the operator is made aware of persons present within the nearby vicinity.

(e) These specific regulations shall not mean that the use of such equipment is not further subject to the nuisance provisions contained in Section 11-39.1 of this Chapter.

(f) The Town Manger is authorized to issue permits to exempt property owners from the time periods set out in this Section on a case by case basis where a property owner applies for a permit to conduct maintenance activity on his/her own property and presents documentation from a physician that due to a medical condition the individual should not be engaging in the landscape maintenance activity during the time periods where such activity is otherwise permitted due to the individual’s sensitivity to heat or other conditions existing during such time periods.

Section 3.  This Ordinance shall be effective September 1, 2005. 

This the 15^th day of June, 2005.