Woodstock Village Trustees gave their approval Tuesday night to a committee that will take a look at “big picture” noise issues and consider changes and/or additions to current noise ordinances.
Trustees Chair Candace Coburn hand-picked a committee which she announced as being a combination of business and resident interests: Central Street Jeweler Nick Ferro, Woodstock Inn President and General Manager Werner Graef, South Park Street Resident Gail Stickney and Mountain Avenue Resident Gay Travers. Trish Compton will be the representative from the Village Trustees.
The “Noise Committee” idea comes out of recent heated discussions at Trustees meetings concerning variances given to the Woodstock Inn to accommodate outdoor wedding music. In particular, some neighbors asked for more notice about planned extensions of hours for noise and also for reduced decibel level output.
However, discussions led to a suggestion by Travers to broaden the scope of the conversation to more general “quality of life” issues surrounding all noise — not just wedding music. Various meeting participants, including Woodstock Early Bird, made suggestions about changing the starting or ending hours for Village noise. Others suggested that restrictions should be put on the use of high decibel mechanized equipment such as leaf-blowers and even, in some cases, the use of repetitive sprayers. Truck noise, as always, was brought up as another issue. Trustee Compton said she would like to see a full review of ALL the Village ordinances but it was clarified Tuesday night this committee will occupy itself only with the noise ordinances.
We are glad that Coburn has taken action to form this committee, although we wonder, since she was not able to attend the previous noise-related meetings, whether she has missed the intent of the committee. Announcing last night’s committee, she mentioned that Stickney was a good choice because her home is centrally located within hearing distance of two Inns: The Woodstock Inn and The Blue Horse Inn. Coburn said that meant Stickney was in a great position to consider the issue of wedding noise. True, but this committee was supposed to address more than the one issue the Trustees dealt with this summer.
One of the most notable people in this community who has participated at every meeting, offering the most thoughtful ideas about this issue, has said them with the quietest voice. We regret that Peggy Merrill will not be on this committee. We spoke just yesterday with Merrill about her interest in the issue and the need for such a new committee to look at noise by removing it from its recent connection to weddings at The Woodstock Inn. She said, “We need to step away from that and look more broadly…” Woodstock Early Bird agrees.
As we have said before, people come to Vermont and to Woodstock to live and to visit for its great natural beauty. As part of the overall experience, we need to preserve what is part of that beauty in nature: pockets of natural quiet; temporary sanctuary from the chaos, din and auditory over-stimulation of urban life. Even if just for a few hours, or for a day, we might all benefit from “dialing it down.”
We note that Trustee Chris Miller asked about a timeline for the Noise Committee’s suggestions. Coburn said there was no need for a timeline, no urgency to the matter. However, Miller said something should be done before Spring when everyone will — once again — be firing up the lawn equipment and setting up the band stages.
In the meantime, as we head into Fall, we’ll say we know from one stand-point that leaf-blowers are more efficient than raking but we’re wondering if the Village will provide us all with earplugs or ear protection just like the leaf-blower operators get to use.
Woodstock Early Bird may get her own set of earplugs so you’ll have to speak REALLY LOUDLY if you run into her on the Street!
Julia Carlisle
Woodstock Early Bird 