Live Music Task Force: Yesterday's Sound Subcommittee Hearing

Spurred in large part by Mayor Will Wynn's concern that Austin was losing too many music venues, the City created the Live Music Task Force last February. As the downtown area grows and develops, it is the charge of this task force to find a way of optimally integrating music into our city's future.

The task force is divided into several subcommittees, each of which deal with a specific aspect of the live music industry. As we reported yesterday, the Sound Subcommittee of the task force held court to hear all public testimony.

Yesterday's Sound Subcommittee Meeting (a brief synopsis):

The meeting started just after 6:30pm. Though it was scheduled to last until 8:30pm, it only went to about 7:30. From the start, the four subcommittee members present made their objective plain: To strike a balance between "securing the future of live music" and the needs of Austin residents who live within earshot of venues.

The auditorium crowd was only about a third full, and the overwhelming majority of people present were residents who were displeased with the amount of sound coming from venues in the Central and South Austin areas. Just under 10 citizens got up to share their testimony with the subcommittee panel. Only one of them represented the music industry.

The rest of those who spoke out were concerned residents ranging in attitude from downright angry (one resident from South Austin compared the music he could hear from his bedroom at night to being "terrorized") to eagerly seeking a balancing solution that would benefit everyone. It's worth mentioning that most of those who spoke against live music venues seemed to come from the Barton Hills and South Congress neighborhoods.

Some suggestions from those who testified:

- We need a "reasonable balance" between music and the "livability of our neighborhoods."

- Fines for breaking the City's noise ordinance shouldn't just be complaint driven. Officers should be able to initiate the fining process when they personally observe a violation.

- Enforcement of the noise ordinance should be enhanced. Residents need more options for enforcing the ordinance than just either (1) calling the cops or (2) suing the venue.

- Ideally, the Austin music industry "should police itself."

- All music venues should employ an on-site sound engineer so that appropriate sound levels are achieved and maintained.

- Outdoor music venues should be banned, and all music should be played inside to limit sound "leakage." All music venues should be "soundproofed" so no sound gets out whatsoever (this means "shutting all the windows and doors").

- Different rules should apply to those venues that buffer residential properties.

- Venues should limit the playing of music to "hours of operation" (we presume this means working hours, e.g., 8am - 5pm).

- All outdoor music performances in Austin should be acoustic rather than electric.

The one citizen, a band manager, who stood up to take the music industry's defense claimed that most venues ("run by people who do this for a living," rather than "some coffee shop that has a random happy hour on the patio") can't afford a professional sound engineer, so the process of finding an appropriate volume level is a process of trial and error that takes time.

What do you think, Austinites? What's the best way for the Sound Subcommittee to achieve its stated objective of finding the optimal balance between bolstering the Austin live music industry & appeasing those residents who live near venues?

Contact the author of this article or email tips@austinist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By s in News on May 20, 2008 12:36 PM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

mdahmus

Are you folks ready to stop complaining about condo-dwellers trying to shut down live music yet? I kept telling you it was the Barton Hills crowd (with a smattering of Eastwoods/Hancock re:Stubbs), but did you listen?

Slickshu

Grape Ape -- yes, way under 50.

LoudMouth

Goddamn police force is terrorizing me with their helicopters and search lights flying over my apartment at all hours of the night.

Grape Ape

For anyone that attended, was there actually anyone under the age of 50 that spoke out against live music? And "terrorized" that still cracks me up - something tells me that guy must have one hell of a trumatic day to day life if he is terrorized by the sound of live music.

LoudMouth

All outdoor music performances in Austin should be acoustic rather than electric.

Anyone who thinks that needs to be locked up and their home sold to HUD because they are crazy.

ttrentham

I'm guessing that the guy who described himself as being "terrorized" by live music is the same guy who came to a commander's forum a couple of months ago in Travis Heights that was focused on burglaries in the area and how to work to fight them.

There's a whole room full of people, many of whom have had their houses broken into and property stolen and this guy comes all the way from another neighborhood (Barton Hills if I recall) to complain about live music noise. What a colossal douche.

seth

I heard a rumor / conspiracy theory that SXSW is a proponent of limiting the outdoor events because they don't like 3rd parties setting up festivals in parks, etc. that aren't SXSW official events.

Seth

Slickshu

Are you referring to the hearing held in Council chambers last night -- because your synopsis must be of a different meeting (or you've subjected your ears to too many 85 decibel evenings).

This synopsis is riddled with statements and qualifiers that don't reflect the testimony -- no one said "all" outdoor music performances should be acoustic; no one said outdoor music venues "should be banned"; no one said "all" music should be played inside; no one said "all" music venues should employ an on-site sound engineer.

And frankly, many of the neighborhood folks expressed their fondness for live music, and displayed no intent to undermine the industry (except one woman who just had a series of gripes). I guess you do what you gotta do to sell papers (or ads, whatever), but I think most people who were there are reasonable enough to see beyond the hype, find a responsible compromise.