REGION: County wants to revamp noise rules

Changes irk off-road enthusiasts, their neighbors
This story has been modified since its original posting.

By EDWARD SIFUENTES - Staff Writer | Tuesday, October 28, 2008 6:02 PM PDT ∞

Proposed changes to the county's noise ordinance are upsetting off-road enthusiasts who say the new rules could severely restrict where they can play in the backcountry.

Residents concerned about noise from off-road vehicles said the proposed rules are not strict enough.

As part of an update to some county regulations, officials with the Planning and Land Use Department are proposing stricter noise rules in the unincorporated county ---- particularly with regard to off-road vehicles.

The current noise ordinance is outdated and needs to be changed, said Joe Farace, a county planning manager.

The proposed changes would clarify noise levels in residential, commercial and agricultural areas.They also would set limits on construction and off-road vehicle noise, as well as new standards for measuring those sounds.

"We're revamping it because it's so old and it hadn't been done," Farace said.

The changes were first aired at a Planning Commission hearing in May. The draft ordinance drew many comments, including people who thought it was not strict enough, and off-roaders who thought it was too restrictive.

It was the changes to the off-road vehicle noise limits that drew the most comments.

"I like to see people enjoying their property," said Michael Adams, a Vista off-roader and a concert sound engineer. "I'm not against this ordinance, but with these noise levels, you could bust your neighbor for mowing his lawn."

The ordinance proposed in May would have limited noise levels for off-road vehicles ---- such as dirt bikes, go-carts and dune buggies ---- to 65 decibels between the hours of 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sixty-five decibels is often described as the sound of a loud conversation between two people.

Based on complaints from the public and comments from several members of the planning commission, county officials modified the proposal to allow for louder sound. The maximum noise level for off-road vehicles during the day was increased from 65 decibels to 82, which is sometimes described as the sound of a loud yell.

State law requires that off-road vehicles built after 1986 limit their noise to 96 decibels. A typical lawn mower produces a sound of about 90 decibels.

At night, noise levels were increased from 55 decibels to 77 decibels for the hours between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Noise levels were left unchanged at 55 decibels between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

The revamped version of the proposed ordinance is scheduled to be heard at the Planning Commission's meeting on Oct. 31.

The commission makes recommendations on planning and land-use matters, such as the proposed ordinance. However, the Board of Supervisors ultimately will decide whether to adopt or reject the changes.

Similar changes have been controversial in communities throughout Southern California.

In 2006, Riverside County approved a noise ordinance that requires landowners in unincorporated areas to obtain permits and pay fees before riding dirt bikes and other motorized off-road vehicles on their property. It forbids any riding on plots of less than 5 acres and limits the number of people who can ride at a time on larger parcels.

A coalition of off-road riding and industry groups later sued Riverside County over the noise regulations, saying the rules conflicted with existing laws and placed harsh burdens on longtime landowners. The lawsuit was dismissed.

Off-road enthusiasts in San Diego County were not the only ones making noise over the proposed changes, Farace said.

"We got all types of different comments," he said. "Some people said, 'We think it should be worded this way, rather than that way.' And others said it was discriminatory to off-road vehicle advocates."

Representatives of two East County planning groups said at a hearing in May that the proposed ordinance was not strict enough, according to minutes of the meeting.

Members of the Potrero Community Planning Group approved a resolution in August saying the higher noise levels allowed under the proposed ordinance would "disturb neighbors and wildlife" and suggested the county conduct an environmental study on the proposed changes.

A Warner Springs resident said she was concerned the proposed ordinance would allow her neighbor to disturb the quiet in her neighborhood.

"It is my opinion that favoritism is being shown to those who want to ride off-road vehicles," Veronica Vanderlaan wrote in a letter to the county, complaining about the changes. "I am totally disappointed in the work that has been done on this new proposed noise ordinance."

One controversial aspect of the proposal is how sound will be measured by county code enforcement officers. The proposal would allow officers to measure sound levels in short periods of time, rather than sampled in a one-hour average.

That means that a short, loud noise could violate the ordinance. The sound level would be measured at the property line of the person who placed the complaint, Farace said.

The new measurement standard would allow "an additional enforcement tool," county officials wrote in a report to the Planning Commission.

However, the proposed ordinance, including the new measurement standard, would make it nearly impossible for off-roaders to enjoy their vehicles on their own property, opponents say.

"The proposed ordinance is a direct attack on the off-road community," Rick Moore, an El Cajon resident, wrote in a letter to the county.

Adams, the off-road enthusiast, said he would not be directly affected by the ordinance as he lives in Vista and goes to designated off-road recreation areas in Imperial County to ride his vehicles. However, he said he worried that off-roaders were being unfairly singled out by the ordinance.

Adams said he heard about the proposed changes through a newsletter from the San Diego Off-Road Coalition, a group that promotes off-roading and advocates on behalf of those who like to ride those vehicles.

The coalition did not return calls for comment.

The increase in the noise level to 85 decibels is an improvement to the original proposed ordinance, Adams said. But he would still like to see a measurement that includes an average over time, rather than quick measurements that will capture sounds at their loudest, Adams said.

"What is troublesome with this is that without averaging (noise measurements), no off-highway vehicles would pass a drive-by test," Adams said.

Contact staff writer Edward Sifuentes at (760) 740-3511 or esifuentes@nctimes.com.

CLARIFICATION: State has two standards

A story on the county's noise ordinance published Oct. 23 in most editions of the North County Times should have clarified that there are two state standards for off-road vehicles.

The first standard is a 96-decibel limit, which measures the sound level 20 inches from the exhaust as the vehicle stands still.

The second is an 82-decibel standard, which measures sound levels 50 feet from a moving vehicle.

The county proposes to model its ordinance using the second standard.

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Pre-Registration Comments[-]Go to Top

Inland wrote on Oct 23, 2008 8:41 PM:I wish they would apply this ordinance to the cars rock'n & roll'n on our city streets.

Bow wow wow wrote on Oct 23, 2008 9:34 PM:What's the decibel level of a barking dog? I've got 'em all around me.

Roger wrote on Oct 23, 2008 9:44 PM:What about all the Harleys (and wanna be's) with no mufflers whatsoever? You can hear them 3 blocks away.

VC resident wrote on Oct 23, 2008 9:53 PM:This is laughable! SD Code enforcement can't handle BASIC blatant violations in a timely manner. How could they enforce ANYTHING like this. What waste of energy.

uranium wrote on Oct 23, 2008 9:54 PM:Seems similar to the cell phone while driving law. There will never be a way to efficiently enforce this law and everyone will just carry on as they were and try not to be the one who gets caught. You can't legislate common sense (which is: don't annoy your neighbors with off road noise all day)

aaa wrote on Oct 24, 2008 4:38 AM:Sound limits in residential areas are just common sense, but applying this county-wide is insanity. Riverside's rule that no riding at all is legal on less than 5 acres? What the hell is that? Absolutely rediculous. Just one more encroachment on your freedom; Big Brother has a new tool in his bag. This sounds like another Sierra Club backed attempt to steal away land usage rights from everyone but the granola hippies. Welcome to your own self-created nightmare California.

Brad wrote on Oct 24, 2008 6:57 AM:This will just be another law that police can enforce or not, depending on they feel at the time. Someone should write a book on all the laws that aren't enforced now.

oh ya wrote on Oct 24, 2008 7:28 AM:You don't like the sound of my motorcycle, I don't like the smell of your live stock. Maybe we need a smell ordnance for our rural lands. all live stock need to meet unrealistic regulation and be subjected to feed to lower thier "emissions". If you move to areas where things are less regulated don't turn around and demand more regulation when something bugs you. Your complaining is bugging everybody else and will cost more tax payers money in enforcement. YOU failed to do your homework on the reality of country living. Deal with it or move to the suburbs.

Like moving wrote on Oct 24, 2008 10:00 AM:next to an airport then complaining about the noise. People if you don't like it go back to the quite city and leave us who have lived in the country forever alone! Go mother hen someone else. Why are we allowing government to even be involved in this anyway? It has nothing to do with safety or security! Any Supervisor who even listens to this needs to be voted out. To much medling!

Jim in Oceanside wrote on Oct 24, 2008 11:29 AM:I ride a street bike with factory exhaust and the noise level is on par with your average automobile. How about a noise regulation on gas powered lawn mowers, edgers, weed eaters and leaf blowers as well as those pesky 8 cyl and diesel powered vehicles! Maybe "Big Brother" wants to tell me what color I can paint my house too! I agree with "oh ya," before you move into an area, how about checking around for that airport, railroad, 4 lane street, Marine Base where things go boom in the dark. I am all for a noise regulation regarding whining louder than 2dB.

Hey Roger wrote on Oct 24, 2008 11:35 AM:I guess I am a wannabe since I don't ride a Harley. I only started riding around 1963, have averaged 30,000 miles a year on my bike for the past 6 years. But refuse to pay $20-32,000.00 for a H-D equiped the way I want. I currently ride a Yamaha Venture Royale 1300cc Touring Bike and a Kawasaki Vulcan VN1500 Std Cruiser. Both bikes cost me less than 50% of one H-D, maintenance is less often and fantastically less expensive! Yeah right, wannabe! Are you one of those who ride once a month and spend the rest of the time polishing your H-D?

To oh ya wrote on Oct 24, 2008 12:11 PM:Sounds like you are trying to back up that is okay for your pipes to be heard blocks away and to shake a house as you drive by it.

You could make your pipes much quieter, but you choose not to.

As for the smell of live stock. If the land is zoned for live stock, tuff luck.

fallbrook_mom wrote on Oct 24, 2008 1:07 PM:i wish they would crack down on barking dogs - that seems to be the biggest problem in my Fallbrook neighborhood. where does the law stand on this???

like the country quiet wrote on Oct 24, 2008 1:32 PM:We've got off-road, barking dogs (that run off leash), and screaming kids (they are home schooled )...I live on three acres and THAT isn't large enough to keep from hearing all the sounds comming from one bad neighbor. When is the next meeting?

pat wrote on Oct 24, 2008 1:49 PM:They should first crack down on the car radios in Escondido. You can hear them coming blocks away!

to Like the country quiet wrote on Oct 24, 2008 2:02 PM:You want peace and quiet and you live in southern California? Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Funny wrote on Oct 24, 2008 5:21 PM:Inland and Roger got it right. If you want loud, you don't have to go off-road to get it, and no one enforces that.

To Oh Yea, a dude in Encinitas was fined for the smell of livestock on property that had been farmland forever, and it was the neighbors in the new subdivisions that complained, so Big Brother is ALREADY
going after the smell.

This is all just another example of no tolerance OR consideration for people around us. Society is marching this diriction, with everyone saying "me, me, me", and "I want, I want, I want".

Its not funny haha; it's funny like dark humor is funny.

Country Girl wrote on Oct 24, 2008 7:11 PM:To Bow wow wow, fallbrook_mom and like the country quiet.
Current county codes already cover "dogs on the loose" and uncontrolled barking. Good luck getting the understaffed Animal Control to come out and write the ticket. You will most likely have to make your own citizens arrest and pursue it through the D.A.'s office. It took me a year and a half but my neighbor finally keeps her dogs quiet and on her own property.

Miguel wrote on Oct 24, 2008 10:16 PM:I have a neighbor who likes to play drums everyday for 20 minutes in the late afternoons. He limits his playing time to be considerate. A simple compromise. Can't we all just get along?

National Ban wrote on Oct 25, 2008 5:48 AM:Inland wrote: “I wish they would apply this ordinance to the cars rock'n & roll'n on our city streets.”
VC resident wrote: “…SD Code enforcement can't handle BASIC blatant violations in a timely manner. How could they enforce ANYTHING like this. What waste of energy.”

Good points.

Cars should never have been allowed to be fitted with ridiculously loud booming bass amplifiers in the first place. The only effect of those things is to step on the rights of others by annoying, aggravating, harassing, and basically harming those who are forced to endure that racket day and night.

There should be a national ban on that type of automobile equipment. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and no one has a right to blast their thumping bass harassing others on tax payer funded roads or lands. A national ban would allow communities to spend more money on local improvement projects, instead of having to protect citizens from selfish abusive people blasting their booming bass - or buzzing engine and exhaust.

Respect Others wrote on Oct 25, 2008 5:58 AM:Oh ya wrote: “…YOU failed to do your homework on the reality of country living. Deal with it or move to the suburbs.”

LOL that’s too funny! – and sad. People who have to deal with this kind of loud cr*p in the city and suburbs are told to move to the country by people like you, and now you’re telling them that they need to move to the suburbs? Tell you what, why don’t YOU move? Or, better yet try not to be so selfish and show some respect for others.

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