Hi All, After calling in a complaint about the exceptionally loud noise last night from Bowstring, I was quite shocked when Officer Peterson of RPD told me that the Raleigh noise ordinance was suspended on Aug. 8 due to the city being sued by business owners, and police were not enforcing any noise ordinance until the new noise ordinance takes effect January 1st. I sent an email to city council members for verification (and an explanation if it is true that Raleigh is functioning with NO noise ordinance until January). I received the following reply from council member Megan Patton:
Hi Susan,
I think there has been a misunderstanding. The noise ordinance was not suspended due to litigation. The litigation has caused the suspension of a certain night life permit. I’ll forward this along to the Chief for consideration. It is true that the new noise ordinance goes into effect on Jan 1st.
Best Regards,
Megan
--
Megan Patton
Raleigh City Council, District B
I was the second person to call tonight. Hoping others will as well. I am wondering if they’re feeling emboldened because it’s as loud as it has ever been. My son was afraid of it and he had to turn on a noise machine for him to go to bed. We can hear it over the TV.
Sarah on Fenton
Sent from my iPhone
Hi, all.
Several of us had a productive meeting with the owner of Bowstring, Council
members Corey Branch and Christina Jones, the associate city attorney, city
attorney, and assistant city manager on Tuesday. Our focus was to educate
all parties about the ways in which a decibel-only requirement for
amplified music will likely still result in our being able to hear
Bowstring bands at audible levels from many different points within our
neighborhood.
The Council voted on the ordinance later that day which passed and has an
implementation date of January 1, I believe. An article is here.
<https://www.cbs17.com/news/local-news/wake-county-news/turning-down-the-vol…>
The Council also voted to approve hiring a sound engineer to advise on
noise mitigation approaches for Bowstring and other establishments. Corey
Branch noted that since Bowstring has known noise complaints they will have
to mitigate the issues to get a sound permit which would allow them to
amplify noise to a level above the 70 decibel limit in the newly approved
ordinance. We expect to be able to hear music played at 70 decibels at the
source but have committed to working with Bowstring and City staff to
understand the impact of different decibel levels and mitigation approaches
on how and where we hear music in the neighborhood. We will keep you posted
as we know more about a plan for that and will need your help.
Corey Branch emphasized that Raleigh is only on its third iteration of a
noise ordinance and that for other cities many more iterations have been
required before getting to one that feels like the right balance. I believe
the Council expects this will not be Raleigh's last iteration.
I have heard neighbors say that they have found Council members to be
unresponsive. I am personally willing to take the efforts of Corey Branch
(who represents our district) and Christina Jones (who represents the
district that Bowstring is in) at face value for now and work with them to
try to address our current issues as well as inform future iterations of
the noise ordinance.
FYI, Mark, I will send this same update to the main listserv and invite
anyone who wants to be part of this effort to join this action listserv.
Krista
Midwood & Dennis
They have turned it up three times since I came outside about ten minutes ago. OMG. I typically would call the police but it’s 2pm.
Sent from my iPhone
Hi, neighbors.
*There are 41 of us on this ‘action listserv'. If each of us signed a
petition and got a handful of neighbors to do the same, we could easily
have a list of 100 people to share with the city staff and council members
before they vote (or decide to send the draft ordinance for more work) on
Tuesday. *
That would make a huge impact!
From what it took to prepare to speak at the public hearing, I have
distilled in a petition my best effort to represent what would address the
neighborhood’s needs related to amplified noise. Thank you to Lauren, Erin,
and Malcolm for helping me try to capture something that could continue to
educate city officials who are involved in creating a new ordinance.
Please consider signing it and asking five of your neighbors to as well. I
have provided cut and paste language below that you can use to pass it
along. If I can give you anything else to make this easy for you or help
you answer questions, let me know.
Krista
Midwood and Dennis
—-----------------------------------------------------
CUT AND PASTE LANGUAGE:
As you may know, about 25 neighbors attended a public hearing on a new
noise ordinance on Tuesday of this week. We are now trying to deliver 100
signatures to our Corey Branch, our City Council representative by Monday. This
petition is an attempt to represent what would address the neighborhood’s
needs related to noise that carries directly into our neighborhood from
Bowstring Pizza. Will you sign it by clicking here
<https://c.org/vhqrkm9zWW>? You can read about the issue below.
Even if you do not hear music from Bowstring, please consider signing it.
Why? The ordinance will apply across the whole city and, with the amount of
development happening around us, it is likely we will have more music
venues within earshot soon.
The purpose of the petition is to try to educate city officials about why
the draft ordinance will not change our hearing music at loud volumes and
far distances from the source. It is the culmination of months of
conversations with neighbors, reading all the material provided ahead of
the public hearing and participating in it. If you would like to be
involved with 41 neighbors who are working on this issue, let me know and
you can join a listserv subthread dedicated to the topic.
About the Petition
Click here to access it. <https://c.org/vhqrkm9zWW>
The phrasing of the petition is meant to match that of the draft ordinance
and the sound consultant’s report which informed it. If you would like to
read through the draft ordinance, it is attached here.
Here’s the basics:
-
The draft ordinance has requirements for how many decibels amplified
music can be played at when measured from its source.
-
The problem is that the topography between Bowstring and this
neighborhood is ideal for carrying sound - we are each on ridges with a
creek corridor in the middle at a lower elevation and there is nothing in
between to absorb, reflect, or reduce the sound except the friction of air.
-
It’s a difficult situation for everybody involved but what we are trying
to avoid is a noise ordinance that would give us no recourse if Bowstring,
or any other venue that is currently or will in the future be around us,
decides not to try to address the effects of the landscape
-
With the sound ordinance the way it is currently drafted, when I hear
live music from my bedroom (which I do), I can complain (which I hate
spending my time on) but as long as it is measuring at an allowable decibel
level at the source, it will be allowable under the ordinance.
-
The ordinance as it is currently drafted also allows venues to apply for
a permit to go to a higher decibel level.
Hey y'all. I have an open slate for Monday's East CAC Meeting. Would it
be helpful to discuss the noise ordinance during this time? I am
reaching out to someone in the city who might explain in detail what the
ordinance does. As it's late in the game, I think w ewhould proceed
whether or not the city participates.
Let me know what you think!
Mark
Trey and neighbors,
Please see the attached reports, presentations, and ordinances that
were part of the City Council meeting. Those of us working on this issue
are on a separate listserv conversation. We have committed to not
conducting conversations about it on this main listserv and only announcing
infrequent updates and engagement opportunities here.
If anyone would like to join the more in-depth discussions and efforts, we
would welcome you. You can ask Mark Turner to be added to that list-serv
subthread.
Krista
On Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 11:07 AM Trey Marchant via BPW <bpw(a)eastraleigh.org>
wrote:
> I'll echo all the thanks to Krista, Lauren, and Erin, as well as all those
> who participated/attended. I did not attend the meeting and was wondering
> if there has been any discussion regarding controlling the sound with an
> engineered approach. I'm not an engineer and don't know exactly what that
> might look like (or the feasibility, for that matter) but perhaps some sort
> of barriers, sound deflectors/absorbers, etc. that are strategically placed
> might be able to control the volume enough that nearby neighborhoods would
> not be significantly affected. Perhaps an "acceptable" decibeI limit
> could be a City requirement that the venue owner would need to meet to
> operate live music outdoor venues. Maybe there already is such an ordinance
> but it's just not being enforced? I personally like the idea of having live
> music venues close by and would prefer that they remain, but of course not
> to the detriment of quality of life for nearby residents.
>
> Trey on Dennis Ave.
>
> On Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 10:26 AM lindawblaine via BPW <bpw(a)eastraleigh.org>
> wrote:
>
>> Thank you to all of you who represented our neighborhood and especially
>> to the speakers, Krista, Lauren, and Erin.
>>
>> Linda Blaine
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my Galaxy
>>
>>
>> -------- Original message --------
>> From: Eric Hill via BPW-Action <bpw-action(a)eastraleigh.org>
>> Date: 10/15/25 9:25 AM (GMT-05:00)
>> To: Ashlyn Bradshaw <ashbshaw(a)gmail.com>, kpadge via BPW-Action <
>> bpw-action(a)eastraleigh.org>, Lauren Markley <antigenre_arts(a)yahoo.com>
>> Cc: Julie Eldridge <eldrij403(a)gmail.com>, bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>> Subject: [BPW-Action] Re: [Belvidere-Woodcrest]Re: THANK YOU!!
>>
>> Big thanks to Krista, Lauren and Erin and all the neighbors who turned up
>> to support. There were 20ish people I believe, I think we made a strong
>> impression!
>>
>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 8:08 PM Ashlyn Bradshaw via BPW <
>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Julie, well said! I was impressed by how articulate Lauren, Krista and
>>> Erin were. Thank you!
>>>
>>> Ashlyn
>>>
>>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 7:48 PM Julie Eldridge via BPW <
>>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Neighbors, I am happy to report that Krista, Lauren and Erin, who spoke
>>>> at the hearing tonight, represented us well. Great job you three! You were
>>>> clear, you made excellent points with real data and you expressed the meat
>>>> of our problem with aplomb.
>>>> We are so fortunate to have you leading this fight. We all owe you a
>>>> heap of gratitude and respect. Thank you.
>>>>
>>>> Julie
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 7:23 PM Lauren Markley via BPW <
>>>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Thank you, neighbors, to everyone who showed up at the City Council
>>>>> meeting tonight or who sent in messages! And thank you to Krista for
>>>>> organizing us and making signs! We had a good sea of red representing our
>>>>> wonderful neighborhood. The support is greatly appreciated.
>>>>>
>>>>> Lauren
>>>>> Dennis Ave
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Sent from the Oort Cloud
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>
> _______________________________________________
> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>
Thanks for your question, Jenn. I'll reach out shortly regarding how folks
can plug in.
Krista
On Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 9:33 AM Jenn Schaff via BPW <bpw(a)eastraleigh.org>
wrote:
> Ditto - Huge thanks to Krista, Laruen, and Erin! The news clip of Lauren
> that I saw was really great.
>
> I had work run late and couldn't make the meeting last night. Is there a
> petition to sign or a person to email to continue to show support before
> the vote next week?
>
> On Wed, Oct 15, 2025 at 9:25 AM Eric Hill via BPW <bpw(a)eastraleigh.org>
> wrote:
>
>> Big thanks to Krista, Lauren and Erin and all the neighbors who turned up
>> to support. There were 20ish people I believe, I think we made a strong
>> impression!
>>
>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 8:08 PM Ashlyn Bradshaw via BPW <
>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Julie, well said! I was impressed by how articulate Lauren, Krista and
>>> Erin were. Thank you!
>>>
>>> Ashlyn
>>>
>>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 7:48 PM Julie Eldridge via BPW <
>>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Neighbors, I am happy to report that Krista, Lauren and Erin, who spoke
>>>> at the hearing tonight, represented us well. Great job you three! You were
>>>> clear, you made excellent points with real data and you expressed the meat
>>>> of our problem with aplomb.
>>>> We are so fortunate to have you leading this fight. We all owe you a
>>>> heap of gratitude and respect. Thank you.
>>>>
>>>> Julie
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Oct 14, 2025 at 7:23 PM Lauren Markley via BPW <
>>>> bpw(a)eastraleigh.org> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Thank you, neighbors, to everyone who showed up at the City Council
>>>>> meeting tonight or who sent in messages! And thank you to Krista for
>>>>> organizing us and making signs! We had a good sea of red representing our
>>>>> wonderful neighborhood. The support is greatly appreciated.
>>>>>
>>>>> Lauren
>>>>> Dennis Ave
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Sent from the Oort Cloud
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
>> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>>
> _______________________________________________
> BPW mailing list -- bpw(a)eastraleigh.org
> To unsubscribe send an email to bpw-leave(a)eastraleigh.org
>
