Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/124273
Sarasota News Leader April 26, 2013 Page 29 current sound ordinance before unleashing "You can control the duration of the permit and the hours of operation. You can demand the ad hoc committee. sound attenuation plans by an engineer. You Caragiulo late last year and earlier this year can hold a second public hearing after the hosted town hall-style meetings to hear what Planning Board finishes [addressing a reresidents thought about the impact of the so- quest], if you think it should be approved with called noise ordinance. His first meeting was [more] conditions," he said. "Or you could primarily attended by younger people and en- deny it." tertainers who urged relaxation of the restricThe commissioners, by consensus, agreed tions to create "a more vibrant downtown." to defer the idea of a moratorium until conWhen word circulated that people were urg- ditions outlined by Fournier have been met. ing looser rules on sound, Caragiulo's second Those include holding two public hearings meeting was packed with downtown condo- and resolving questions about four legal isminium residents urging shorter hours for mu- sues revolving around a moratorium — duration, evidence of potential harm, justification sic, less noise and serious enforcement. and constitutionality. THE FATE AND FACE OF DOWNTOWN The commission will take up the sound ordinance issue in a major way at its regular meeting on May 6. It has asked the Sarasota Police Department to offer up information about enforcement, sound levels, complaints, calls for service, citations and arrests. Caragiulo has said from the beginning the discussion is not about sound, it is about planning the future of downtown. And that comment — from both sides of the issue — has been intellectually embraced and amplified, although the two sides have different ideas "I have made it mandatory there will be docuabout what the future of downtown should be. mentation on any noise-related call," Sarasota "We have a quality of life issue for the future," Police Chief Bernadette DiPino told the comBarbara Campo told the commissioners April missioners. 23. The long-time downtown resident said, She said she is "holding our officers to [a re"We do not need any more nightclubs. They quirement to] write down [complaints] and bring only drunkenness, fights and drugs." keep track. We have a detail going out proacAnother downtown resident, Patrick O'Brien, said, "It's our job to raise the problem. It's your job to find a solution. And what type of downtown we are going to have, that's your job, too." After public comments ended, Fournier reminded the commissioners of the city powers that already exist to monitor and control new bars, nightclubs and taverns coming into downtown. tively enforcing the noise ordinance. I have officers assigned to the bar closings and talking to bar owners. We have 17 police officers trained [on noise enforcement] across all the shifts. Please call us if you have a problem with noise." DiPino added that she is working with fire inspectors and code enforcement officers. "We're hoping this is temporary," she said. All of this comes to a head May 6. %