PPAMA
PAVEMENT & PARKING
AREA MAINTENANCE ASSOCIATION
11425 W. Executive Drive
Boise, Idaho 83713
Phone: (208) 322-4800 Fax: (208) 322-1233
To the City Council:
Concerning the Proposed Noise Ordinance
The Pavement and Parking Area Maintenance Association is a new association,
representing contractors involved in pavement and parking area maintenance.
I'm speaking tonight on behalf of the Sweepers in the Valley. Attached is
an itemized list of all those sweepers.
From this discussion, it is my intent that I can convince you that this
ordinance is unfair. I want you to know we have not been given notice to
help deal with this issue. The sweepers are banned, due to complaints on
ACHD's road sweeping, and this does not even address that issue. The sweepers
are being put into an awful position, something you do not want to do. Our
conclusion is we want to help solve any problem with noise from our industry,
prior to being simply banned from business, which is what banning night
sweeping effectively does.
In an effort to stay focused and brief, I will address the following issues:
1) The noise level standards and how they are measured.
2) The banning or outlawing of sweeping from Midnight to 6 AM.
A) Is there a problem?
B) The Practical ramifications of the Sweeping Ban.
C) The Legal ramifications of the Sweeping Ban
1.) The noise level standards and how they are measured.
Based on the latest draft of the ordinance
which I believe is now the one before the Council, the noise is to be measured
from the complainant's property. The standards are set as if the measurements
are taken 50 to 100 feet away or in someone's house, yet in the enforcement
methodology, it does not establish a distance. The measurements can be taken
either inside or outside of a building and/or right up next to any piece
of equipment. Based on this ordinance, the commercial property owner cannot
do any maintenance, sweeping, equipment operation, etc. near his property
line without violating the law. The commercial property owner cannot mow
his grass, clean his carpets, or even allow some vehicles to park in the
outer perimeter parking. In simple words, this is bad law.
The established standards are quite lenient, by most standards, if taken
inside a home, however, they are ridiculous if taken next to equipment.
If you are going to have a noise ordinance, reasonable and required maintenance
needs to be allowed. Is it the intent of the Council to make every maintenance
contractor and service industry a lawbreaker? I don't think so. If we are
going to have a noise ordinance, it needs more work. The one as proposed,
will not work.
City Council - Noise Ordinance February 13, 1996
2.) The banning or outlawing of sweeping from Midnight to 6 AM.
The Sweeping industry is specifically singled
out to be banned from operation from Midnight to 6 am. This is not based
on the violation of a reasonable noise level. It is not based on repeated
gross offenses, etc. Its appears to be based on a couple of isolated situations.
Do we need more laws that improperly attempt to address a problem while,
in fact, creating more problems?
A) Is there a problem with Parking Lot Sweeping? Or is it really ACHD?
I am to understand from the Deputy City that there are 10,000 noise complaints
last year with Road Sweeping being number 5. In trying to get that detail,
I was referred to the Police Dept. as they had the records and the breakdown
by type. I wanted to see if in fact there were many complaints about parking
lot sweeping noises between midnight and 6 am. I have been unable to get
this information. I am still trying to get it. Hopefully, I will be given
access to that information.
In the meantime, not having any success with City records, I contacted every
sweeper in the valley, and queried them as to the number of complaints they
received from noise private sweepers generate from night sweeping in the
past five (5) years. What I found is that the industry does not know of
any problems which forces this law. ACHD did have a problem with "numerous"
complaints but they have changed their policy last year from sweeping at
night. They now only sweep downtown area and other non-noise sensitive areas
at night or early morning hours. Again, this ordinance, however, doesn't
address this, and wrongly addresses parking lot sweeping.
Following are the results of the survey from all parking lot sweepers:
1) Notice of the Noise Ordinance before last week: Not one sweeper
was contacted!!!! There has been some representation otherwise, and it is
in error.
2) Number of complaints in total: 19 in a five (5) year period.
Most sweepers average less than 1 every two years.
3) Number for noise from Midnight to 6 am: 8 in the past five years
Number of Complaints not remedied: 2 due to a non-responsive Sweeper
IN FIVE YEARS. Not only is there not a problem, but the local sweeping industry,
by and large, takes pride in how proactive they have been in maintaining
the peace and quiet of Boise, as well as it's cleanliness. All, but one,
has demonstrated instant quickness to respond to any public complaints.
Even ACHD, who is not bound by this ordinance, has responded due to public
pressure on them.
The major noise of parking lot sweepers is due to the large amount of air
moved to make the sweeper functional, and the engine power it takes to power
that fan. The equipment manufacturers have greatly improved the quietizing
of the equipment. All newer models are now under the noise standards as
established by OSHA, California, and other organizations with purchasing
clout. Noise canopy's, air diversion techniques, etc., have all made sweepers
very quiet, considering the equipment. Some of us have made extensive investments
towards this end, to now be banned from working at all!!
I have had one of our sweepers running outside City Hall the entire time
of this meeting. Did anybody find it objectionable? Question asked of
the City Council at the Noise Ordinance Meeteing, February 13, 1996.
Furthermore, local area sweepers have bent over backwards to adjust schedules
for noise sensitive areas. Some residential areas, such as HillCrest Area,
are higher then the their neighboring commercial area, or, as in the Park
Center - South Shore area, are sandwiched by residential areas. These areas,
and there are others, need to have the sweepers postpone service in those
areas to late morning hours (i.e. 7 am). Public relations pressure has and
will continue to cause the responsible business man in the sweeping business
to adjust and modify his schedule to keep his business sound. Sweepers have
and will have to continue to make adjusts for any complaints, not because
of a law but because it is the only way to stay in business. No store owner
or property manager, or businessman wants an upset neighbor. All the Sweepers
can and have adjusted their routes with one minor exception.
As there are noise sensitive areas, there are also areas that are not noise
sensitive; i.e. Micron, the Mall area, industrial parks, etc. We live with
the market demands and customer urgency requirements, adjusting the areas
to allow us to work without imposition. We have improved and modified our
equipment to be as quiet as possible, with few exceptions. We cannot, however
live with a law that bans sweeping in Boise from Midnight to 6 am.
B) The Practical ramifications of this ordinance to the sweepers and
community:
This is not a guess but a reality. Other communities
and sweepers have already experienced the impact. Many Cities have abandoned
or modified their ordinances to get the sweepers back to work. Beyond simply
quoting herein other communities' negative experience, we also made a simple
demonstration. Sunday Night, we all dumped the dirt, trash, and filth we
remove from Boise parking lots that night on a lot at Myrtle and 11th. That
was 1/365 of the trash we remove each night from Boise parking lots.
We barely get our routes done now, working all night and without the traffic.
If the sweeper cannot sweep the lots when they are empty, he must then work
around traffic. His time on a lot is vastly extended and his cleaning performance
much lower. Here is what will happen:
Many lot owners will not be able to adjust to the higher costs & lower
standards from lot sweeping. Many contracts will be canceled, affecting
both the cleanliness of our City as well as the financial health of the
Sweeper.
Dust complaints will rise. Sweepers will be forced to cut back their vacuum
power to minimize the dirt pickup, focusing on litter and visual trash.
This leaves organic infested dirt to be traffic beaten into even finer form.
Boise will experience higher air emissions, from finer and more filthy dirt
being traffic beat into the air. The City will have more PM10's, affecting
air quality, from both road and lot traffic.
The Sweepers will be operating blowers and equipment with the public present.
Equipment operations and the public do not mix well, from neither a safety
consideration, nor from convenience and trouble free interaction. Complaints
and accidents involving sweepers will dramatically rise. Insurance for the
Sweepers will rise due to the number of filings. Several more sweepers will
go out of business. The more hardy will pickup the accounts, but the high
sweeping value Boise now has will be further depressed and costs to deliver
poorer service will be very high. City Council - Noise Ordinance February
13, 1996
Property owners will experience a janitorial cost increase as the janitors
attempt to deal with more dirt and dust being tracked in. More air filters,
more dust in Boise homes, and the impacts go on and on.
C) What are some of the Legal ramifications of this ordinance to the
City:
1) No sweeper can meet the noise criteria as set forth in the proposed ordinance.
All sweepers will immediately be in violation of the noise ordinance. We
all sweep in apartment complexes parking lots, school lots, etc. If the
noise reading is taken immediately next to the sweeper, every sweeper will
exceed the 65 dba. With an amended reasonable distance, i.e. 75 feet, the
newer machines may pass a modified criteria of 70 dba, but the older ones
will struggle with even that limit. Some lead time must be given to those
smaller companies that have not updated, or they are instantly out of business.
2) Are we forced to breach our Contracts?
Sweepers need to work on lots when stores, malls, etc. are closed. It
is inefficient, dangerous, and cost prohibitive to do otherwise. Most sweepers
will find themselves instantly unable to pay for their equipment and/or
incur prohibitive costs in time and safety risk to attempt daytime only
sweeping. Industry enters into one year contracts. What are we to do with
the contracts we have bound ourselves to? Can we legally break those contracts?
How about the property owner or manager who calculated one cost of maintenance
prior to establishing his rents, and then finds, due to the Noise Ordinance,
a much higher cost. Can he then re-negotiate the rent or lease?
3) What is the legal liability of the City or any Government, shutting
down and affecting a business without recompense?
Is it right for the City to pass an ordinance, without notice, severely
restricting an honest business man and his investment? Even the Federal
Government gives multi-year notice to allow industry to adjust. We all want
government that is responsive to all the needs, and not just rams legislation
down the throats of its people.
4) Will the City share in the increase liability of our industry.
In this litigious world we live in, the City now bans our ability to
reasonably and timely clear parking areas and walkways from hazardous waxed
cups, broken bottles, filthy diapers, etc. Does the City not then assume
the liability by preventing the timely sweeping of the private property?
At least one court case presently claims so.
5) The unfair advantage of Government over private enterprise, Fueling
the growth of Government.
Most of the minor number of complaints from sweepers are caused by the
road sweepers of ACHD. They sweep up the excess chips from chip sealing
in the cool of the early morning hours. This noise ordinance bans private
business from sweeping but it does not address the government, where the
majority of the sweeper complaints come from. Consider the impact; Government
forces can sweep whenever they desire, but private enterprise is restricted.
Is there not something amiss here?
City Council - Noise Ordinance February 13, 1996
6) Consider the resources of our City expended policing Noise.
The general public does not know how to judge dba levels or thus what
noises are excessive or not. But they will know we have a noise ordinance.
Every heard noise will trigger some people to complain. Do we want to take
resources and funds from policing crime to responding to ambiguous noise
enforcement. And yet, there truly are times noise needs to be curbed and
enforcement techniques need to be available. This ordinance as it stands
is not that tool.
In Summary,
I believe this Council wants to give a fair and responsible government
handling of this issue. It is all our responsibility to deal with this issue
properly. We need to have the people tasked with the mission of resolving
any noise problem, to at least listen to the industry they wish to eliminate
or control. They need to look at the impact and concerns of that industry
at the same time, without thinking they can make a problem disappear with
a waiving of the legal wand, i.e. ban the industry.
What would the media do if you decide to ban TV during prime time due to
complaints on their programming? Would you not at least discuss the problem
with them, be it individually if not corporately. The party you tasked to
write this ordinance told one of the sweepers last week that he didn't contact
the sweepers because we did not have an association and he normally does
not go through the yellow pages to find us. We are not so many that an individual
dialog cannot be had with each of us.
The Sweepers all find it offensive that they have been misrepresented to
the press and most likely to this council. They have not been afforded an
opportunity to have input. Also our request for information to assist, even
at this late date, has been unfruitful. We come in here poorly prepared
because we have neither the information the City is acting on, nor have
we had time to muster our forces. This is our first opportunity to deal
with the issue.
Rather than pressing blame, lets remedy that oversight. Help me end the
accusations of Government conspiracy, tyranny, and dishonest representation
to the press by our City officials. If there is a sweeper problem, lets
clearly identify it, and resolve it. With all of our input and help. Lets
address the issues from all views, keeping in mind:
The need of the commercial property owner and public to have a needed service
done at a cost effective time.
The need of the public to have it done without jeopardy; free from dust,
traffic hazard, and noise.
The need for reasonable guidelines the industry can cope with, without undue
legal liability, and/or hardship.
If you must pass a noise ordinance tonight, strike the draconian blanket
language that prevents any sweeping at night; section 6-20-4. Give us, the
sweepers, 60 days to propose an ordinance specifically addressed to the
sweeping industry, as is done elsewhere. We can find a resolution satisfying
all parties.
City Council - Noise Ordinance February 13, 1996
I am a proponent of good laws but make it understandable and reasonable;
it's enforcement methodology predetermined and clear; a good law must be
reasonably enforceable. What we have with this proposed ordinance is a case
of bad law. It is confusing, its measuring criteria unreasonable, it is
not clearly defined, and it makes every maintenance worker and contractor
a law breaker, at one time or another. We believe the police will be inundated
with complaints if the law is passed as it stands presently written. It
also unfairly punishes and discriminates against the parking lot sweeper,
without cause or due process.
"Give private enterprise a chance to be professionals."
On Behalf of the Sweepers of Boise and the PPAMA,
Steve Neighbors
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