GENERAL COMMITTEE

 

 

 

 

 

TO:

Mayor and Members of Council

 

 

 

 

FROM:

Sheila Birrell, Town Clerk

 

 

PREPARED BY:

W. Wiles, Manager, By-Law Enforcement & Licencing

 

 

 

 

DATE OF MEETING:

March 21, 2005

 

 

 

 

SUBJECT:

Noise By-Law Exemption- Canadian Cancer Society

 

 

 

 

RECOMMENDATION:

That Council approve an exemption to the Town’s Noise By-Law 2003-137 to permit amplified music from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on June 10th & 11th, 2005 at the Markham Museum.

 

PURPOSE:

To obtain Council approval for an exemption from the Town’s Noise By-Law 2003-137 allowing for amplified music from the period of 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. on June 10th & 11th, 2005 at the Markham Museum in order that the Canadian Cancer Society may conduct their annual Relay for Life celebration.

 

BACKGROUND:

 

Requirements of Noise By-Law 2003-137

By-Law 2003-137, known as the Noise By-Law, prohibits amplified music from being broadcast from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. each day.

 

Relay for Life Celebration

Each year the Canadian Cancer Society holds a Relay for Life celebration in over 50 communities across Ontario. The celebration extends over a 12 hour period from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. and features teams of individuals participating in a continuous relay walk around a track lined with commemorative candles. The event is family oriented, non-alcoholic, and features various forms of entertainment, culminating in a breakfast and closing ceremonies starting at 5:00 a.m. While the relay is going on various forms of entertainment using amplified music are provided and a sound system to keep participants aware of events is used.

 

Sound Abatement Measures

This will be the second year for the Relay for Life at the Markham Museum. Last year noise complaints from neighbouring residents were received at the event as sound from the event was being heard in the adjoining residential subdivision. Once notified of the problem, event organizers addressed the noise concerns until the “wake up” and closing ceremonies at 5:00 a.m. The event had been held without obtaining a noise exemption.

 

This year the organizers have applied for an exemption under the Noise By-Law. They are aware that the event creates sound issues for the adjoining residential area and that last year’s event “wake up call” disturbed adjoining residents.

 

Event organizers will therefore be working with Museum and Town staff, performers, and their own sound technicians to implement sound abatement measures, such as locating speakers closer to the ground, orienting them away from the residents, and surrounding speakers with solid panels to reduce  the sound that can be heard off -site. Modifications to the “wake-up call” are being implemented to avoid a problem this year.

 

Neighbourhood Notification & Barbeque

The event organizers are preparing a direct mailing to all area residents and will be placing an ad in a local newspaper to notify the public of the event and the noise exemption. They will be also inviting area residents to attend a pre-event barbeque to build awareness of the event.

 

Recommendation for Approval

As the event organizers are now aware of the sound impacts of their event on surrounding residents and have proposed measures to address resident sound concerns, approval is recommended for the requested noise exemption.

 

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS:

None

 

ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATIONS:

None

 

ACCESSIBILITY CONSIDERATIONS:

None

 

ENGAGE 21ST CONSIDERATIONS:

None

 

BUSINESS UNITS CONSULTED AND AFFECTED:

Community Services Commission

 

 

 

 

Sheila Birrell

 

Andy Taylor

Town Clerk                                                                                 Commissioner, Corporate Services