How Loud is too Loud?

Just how loud is too loud for the racket produced on the Square on a Saturday night?

I presume that there was an event on the Square last night. Perhaps I should have driven or walked there to confirm that the amplified sound of a male voice was emanating from the Square before I write this, but I think I'm safe in my assumption. The amplified voice could be heard all the way to the Woodstock Police Station at 656 Lake Avenue!

If a seven-block radius were swung around the Square, how many people were disturbed by this racket?

If the amplified sound can be heard 6-7 blocks away by these tired old ears that cannot hear the low voices of judges and attorneys in McHenry County courtroom from 25 feet away, was the sound too loud?

About two years ago I queried the City staff and asked who monitored the volume of amplified sound. As I recall, I did get a little sympathy at that time and a reply that "someone" (that proverbial and mysterious - and anonymous - "someone") would look into the situation and take action to keep amplified sound under control.

But solutions don't seem to stick around from year to year in Woodstock. It seems to me that any permit issued on for an event on the Square ought to include standard language pertaining to amplified sound. And someone from the City should be there, or at least drop by, to monitor compliance. Or the police officer(s) assigned to the event should monitor it.

After all, if a car stereo can be heard 75 feet from the car, the driver can be ticketed. Why doesn't the City of Woodstock control the noise from the Square?

© 2008 GUS PHILPOTT