Washington Township Erie County
City Zoning Code
City Zoning Code
ARTICLE VIII
Performance Standards
§ 150-60 Observance of performance standards.
No use, land or structure in any district shall involve any element or cause any condition that may be dangerous, injurious or noxious to any other property or persons in the Township. In cases involving performance standards, the Township Council may require a plan of proposed construction or development; a description of machinery proposed and techniques to be used; and the Council may obtain qualified expert consultants to testify as to whether a proposed use will conform to the performance requirements. The cost of such service shall be borne by the applicant. Furthermore, every use of land or structure in any district must observe the following performance standards:
A.
Fire protection. There shall be no unusual fire or explosion hazards. Fire protection and -fighting equipment acceptable to the Board of Fire Underwriters shall be readily available when any activity involving the handling or storage of flammable or explosive materials is carried on. Storage of any explosive materials must be approved by the Zoning Hearing Board and be at least 200 feet from any building in a residential district.
B.
Electrical disturbances. No activity shall cause undue electrical disturbances adversely affecting radio or other equipment in the neighboring area.
C.
Noise.
[Amended 7-5-2017 by Ord. No. 3-17]
(1)
Definitions. As used in this subsection, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
APPLIANCES
A device or piece of equipment designed to perform a specific task, including refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines, dryers, and similar items.
DAYTIME
7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., prevailing time.
DAY-NIGHT LEVEL (Ldn)
Rhe day-night level is the average A-weighted sound level with a penalty of 10dB added to nighttime (10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.) sound levels to account for more noise-sensitive activities during that period.
DECIBEL
A unit of sound level which is a division of a logarithmic scale used to express the ratio of the sound pressure of the source to the pressure of an arbitrarily chosen reference pressure, 2x10 Pa; the ratio is expressed on the decibel scale by multiplying its base 10 logarithm by 20.
EMISSION
The sound output from any given source.
EQUIVALENT SOUND LEVEL (Leq)
The sound level that equals the dBA hypothetical constant sound, which represents the acoustic energy arriving at a given location over a particular period of time.
EXCESSIVE NOISE
Sound which is injurious or which unreasonably interferes with the comfortable enjoyment of life and property and is annoying to a person of ordinary sensibilities. Measured noise levels in excess of the limits established in these regulations or those specified in valid permits are declared to be excessive.
HEAVY CONSTRUCTION MACHINERY
Motor vehicles or equipment used for construction that include, but are not limited to, crawler-tractors, bulldozers, excavators, rotary drills, power shovels, motor graders, paving machines, compactors, trenchers, pavement breakers, compressors, and similar earthmoving machinery.
MOTOR VEHICLE
Any human-operated motorized vehicle that customarily requires registration with a government agency. This includes, but is not limited to, road vehicles, off-road vehicles, motorcycles, watercraft, snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, etc.
NIGHTTIME
10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., prevailing time.
PERSON
Any owner, lessee, occupier, guest, visitor of a property, to include natural persons and entities.
POWER TOOLS
Whether intended for home or commercial use, those tools or equipment that operate by a motorized or powered mechanism, including, but not limited to, lawn mowers, chain saws, powered hand tools, generators, air compressors, etc.
(2)
Noise. Excessive noise shall be muffled or abated, except for those noises specifically exempt under this subsection.
(a)
Emission standards.
[1]
It shall be unlawful for any person to emit, permit, or cause to be emitted noise, by any source, beyond the boundary lines of the property that exceeds the noise levels listed below for a cumulative duration of 10 minutes or more within a one-hour period.
Zoning Classification of Source Property | Maximum Sound Level - Daytime (dBA) | Maximum Sound Level - Nighttime (dBA) |
|---|---|---|
Agricultural District (A-1) | 60 | 50 |
Business (B-1) | 70 | 60 |
Commercial (C-1) | 75 | 70 |
Industrial (I-1) | 80 | 70 |
Rural Residential (R-1) | 60 | 50 |
Suburban Residential (R-2) | 60 | 50 |
Suburban Residential (R-3) | 60 | 50 |
[2]
For any districts for which a maximum sound level is not specifically designated herein, it shall be unlawful for any person to emit, permit, or cause to be emitted any noise that causes a ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn,) to exceed three dBA above the neighborhood background ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn), when measured at or beyond the boundary line of the property on which the noise is originating.
(b)
Special emission standards. Regardless of location, it shall be unlawful for any person to emit, permit, or cause to be emitted any noise from the following sources, as follows:
[1]
Motor vehicles that exceed 80 dBA for any period of time when measured from a distance of at least 50 feet, or that cause the ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn) to exceed three dBA above the background ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn), unless such vehicle conforms to the manufacturing standards under which the particular vehicle was built and other statutory sound emission requirements. This does not apply to police sirens, fire sirens, ambulances, or other government emergency vehicles used solely for public purpose.
[2]
Howling or barking dogs or animals that exceed 60 dBA as measured from the property line for any length of time, or that cause a ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn) to exceed three dBA above the background ten-minute Leq (ten-minute Ldn).
(3)
Measurement procedures. Sound measurements may be taken by the Washington Township Zoning Officer, a representative designated by the Township, or board-certified noise control professional. Such measurements must be taken using an authentic noise-measuring instrument that has been calibrated immediately before and immediately after a measurement is taken.
(4)
Exemptions. Noise emitted from the following sources shall be exempt under the noise regulations set forth herein:
(a)
All safety signals and warning devices (e.g., security alarms, backup alarms on trucks); authorized emergency response vehicles, when responding to an emergency (e.g., police, fire, ambulance sirens or other device used to alert persons to an emergency or used to carry out emergency procedures).
(b)
The provision, repair, and maintenance of municipal services or public utilities.
(c)
Motor vehicles and heavy construction equipment used for the purpose of construction (e.g., construction, repair, or demolition of a building, road, well, etc.) during daytime hours, provided said vehicles or equipment are operated within the manufacturer specifications and with all standard noise-reducing equipment in use, unmodified, and in proper working condition and otherwise conform to other statutory sound emission requirements.
(d)
Other activities specifically authorized by construction permits.
(e)
Appliances, snow removal equipment, and household power tools in use during daytime hours, provided such are operated within the manufacturer specifications and with all standard noise-reducing equipment in use, unmodified, and in proper working condition.
(f)
Air conditioners, fans, heating units and similar devices, provided such are operated within the manufacturer specifications.
(g)
Airplanes, helicopters, and normal activities of properly licensed airports.
(h)
Bells, chimes and carillons used for religious purposes or in conjunction with national celebrations or public holidays; existing bells, chimes and carillons that are currently in use for any purpose.
(i)
Musical, recreational, and athletic events or performances conducted by schools or local government or such other events open to the public and expressly authorized by the Township for said purposes.
(5)
Violations. Any person who violates, or permits a violation of, the provisions of this subsection shall, upon conviction, be required to pay a civil fine of not more than $600 per violation, in addition to all applicable filing costs and the Township's attorney's fees in prosecuting said violation. A separate violation shall arise for each day or portion thereof in which a violation of this section is found to exist. The Township is also authorized to file and maintain actions in the court of common pleas as permitted by law.
D.
Smoke. The maximum amount of smoke emission permissible shall be determined by the use of the Standard Ringelmann Chart issued by the United States Bureau of Mines. No smoke of a shade darker than Number 2 will be allowed. Exception to this may occur when starting new fires or there is a breakdown of equipment.
E.
Vibrations. Vibrations detectable without instruments on neighboring property in any district other than the Industrial District shall be prohibited. Vibrations detectable without instruments on neighboring property in the Industrial District shall be permitted, provided that such vibrations do not endanger or in any other way damage persons or properties on neighboring properties.
F.
Air pollution. No pollution of air by fly ash, dust, vapors or other substance shall be permitted which is harmful to health, animals, vegetation or other property.
G.
Glares. Lighting devices which produce objectionable direct or reflected glare on adjoining properties or thoroughfares shall not be permitted.
H.
Erosion. No erosion by wind or water shall be permitted which will carry objectionable substances onto neighboring properties.
I.
Water pollution. The method of discharging wastes to public sewers, drains or watercourses shall be acceptable to the State Department of Environmental Protection.
J.
Stormwater retention facilities. No development shall be permitted unless stormwater retention facilities shall be provided which, in the opinion of the Township, shall prevent any increase in the stormwater flow after development as compared to stormwater flow prior to development.
