East Dundee to set definitive time limits on when loud noise and music must end on weekdays, weekends

The village of East Dundee has inconsistent ordinances on when loud noise or loud music must end at night, a situation trustees plan to rectify at their Aug. 7 meeting.

One section of the village code states no loud music or noise is allowed after 10:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and after 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday. A different section, however, says the Friday and Saturday noise limit time is midnight, Police Chief James Kruger told the village board at its last meeting.

That makes it tough to enforce when a resident complains that something’s too loud and they want the police to intervene, Kruger said.

“We can go with midnight or 11. It’s up to the board,” Village Manager Erika Storlie said. “It’s just that we need both sections of the code to be consistent (when) we go to enforce it. ... We just need to know what direction you want to go.”

Residents in and around the downtown district have repeatedly raised concerns about noise, citing one bar in particular for presenting live music that neighbors do not like, officials said.

“We’ve had surrounding residents in here before us who have all expressed concern with the noise levels going late into the night,” Village President Jeff Lynam said. “Adding another hour, I don’t think, will thrill them,”

Trustee Andy Sauder said most of the complaints stem from incidents or events that occur on weeknights. In his opinion, midnight is appropriate for weekends but the weekday time should be reined in to 9:30 p.m., he said.

What concerned Trustee Sarah Brittin was changing the ordinance in the middle of summer, when many bars and restaurants have already scheduled live events, she said.

“I do not really want to see our local establishments fined or ticketed for noise violations if they’ve got standing contracts,” she said. “I’m happy to have it changed. I just don’t want it to be all of a sudden.”

Storlie said the board could have the new hours take effect Jan. 1, 2024, so it won’t affect this summer’s live events.

While trustees seemed willing to allow the later hour on weekends, community input will be sought on both the weekday and weekend hours before they commit to a standard policy.

No public comments one way or the other were voiced at the meeting.

Village officials said the ordinance would continue to grant exceptions for events like block parties and festivals. However, special event permits must be obtained before they can be held and restrictions can be set as part of that.

During the board’s discussion, the question arose whether it was appropriate for residents to call 911 to lodge noise complaints. Kruger said that while it may not constitute an emergency, calling 911 was still the best option.

Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.