HomeMy WebLinkAboutCSD-17-104 - Ever After Music Festival - Bingemans - June 8 - 10, 2018REPORT TO: Community & Infrastructure Services Committee
DATE OF MEETING: January 8, 2018
SUBMITTED BY: Gloria MacNeil, Director of By-law Enforcement, 519-741-2200,
ext. 7952
PREPARED BY: Gloria MacNeil, Director of By-law Enforcement, 519-741-2200,
ext. 7952
WARD(S) INVOLVED: 1
DATE OF REPORT: December 5, 2017
REPORT NO.: CSD-17-104
SUBJECT: NOISE EXEMPTION REQUEST EVER AFTER MUSIC FESTIVAL
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BINGEMANS JUNE 8, 9, 102018
___________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
That an exemption to Chapter 450 (Noise) of the City of Kitchener Municipal Code
be granted for the Ever After Music Fest, to be held at Bingemans Center on June
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8, 9 and 10,2018, between the hours of 5pm and 11:00 PM on the Friday
evening, 11am 11pm on the Saturday evening and 11am 9pm on the Sunday
evening. This exemption is subject to the following conditions, which, if not
complied with, will render the noise exemption null and void:
a) There shall be no offensive language, in the opinion of City staff, generated
from this music festival, audible in any adjacent residential neighbourhood.
b) The event organizers will ensure that there is an on-site contact person
accessible to correspond with City staff at all times during the event; and
c) The event organizers agree to respond accordingly to requests from City
staff, during the event, in order to address community concerns that may
arise with regard to the impact of noise heard within adjacent residential
areas.
d) The maximum decibel level (dBA) audible from a residential area shall not
exceed 55 dBA.
e) The event organizer will be responsible for the cost of a paid-duty Noise
Officer, to be assigned specifically to this event which shall be paid in full
prior to the event.
*** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. ***
Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance.
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BACKGROUND:
The Ever After
electronic dance music is scheduled to be held at Bingemans Center, at 425 Bingemans
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Center Drive, on June 8, 9 and 10, 2018, between the hours of 5pm and 11:00 PM on
the Friday evening, 11am 11pm on the Saturday evening and 11am 9pm on the
Sunday evening. This event will be held in an outdoor venue on the property and an
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would be required.
REPORT:
As a result of the large number of complaints (100 plus) that were received on the
Sunday evening of the 2017 Ever After Music Festival, staff have been working with
Novus Environmental Inc. (who specialize in air quality, sound and vibration,
sustainable water and wind and climate) over the past several months to conduct a
event which resulted in a high number of complaints, specifically on the Sunday
evening.
Typical evening ambient sound levels, which are the background noise levels without
any contributing noise intrusions such as, traffic, music, etc. in the neighbourhoods
surrounding this event,range from 38dBA to 43dBA. Ambient sound levels decrease
into the evening as things start to quiet down, this is generally when complaints are
received because noise is more audible in the evening due to the quieter background
levels. This has been characteristic of the complaints we have received during the Ever
After Music Festival for the past two years.
A temperature inversion occurs when a warm, less dense air mass is positioned over a
dense, cold air mass, the influence of a temperature inversion can sometimes cause
distant sources of noise to sound much closer than they really are. Temperature
inversions along with other meteorological conditions such as wind speed, wind
direction, temperature and humidity can have a large effect on how sound is propagated
and there is a potential for an increase in complaints, especially from an outdoor venue.
Novus Environmental Inc. completed areview of both the sound and weather patterns
for the past three years over the weekends the Ever After Music Festival took place. It
was noted that on the Sunday evening in 2016 and 2017 there were temperature
inversions on both evenings with a significant one taking place on the Sunday evening
this past year (2017).
It was also determined the high number of complaints on the Sunday evening in 2017,
are likely contributable to multiple factors which include:
Meteorological conditions (inversions, wind speed/direction)
High allowable limits (65dBA)
Low ambient sound levels in the evening
Nature of the music (variation, rhythmic, bass heavy, noise fatigue)
It is important to note there are no environmental noise guidelines set by the Province
that specifically apply to concert type noise. Noise guideline standards are typically
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applied to industrial stationary noise sources, however these standards may still be
useful as an indicator for concert noise impacts.
Sound levels that are less than a 5dBA difference from the ambient sound levels will be
barely audible and generally will result in few or no complaints. Sound levels that range
between 5 to 15dBA over the ambient sound levels are sometimes audible and
complaints are likely. Anything greater than 15dBA is highly audible and there will be
widespread complaints.Staff are recommending a maximum decibel level of 55dBA in
a residential zone which will be between 12-17 dBA over the ambient sound level in the
evening for the surrounding areas.
Staff recognize that music events like the Ever After Music Festival are culturally,
socially and economically important to the City of Kitchener and we have worked with
both Beyond Oz Productions (event promotors) and Novus Environmental Inc. to try and
achieve a balance and compatibility that will work for everyone including the area
residents.Based on the information identified in the study, it clearly showed the
meteorological conditions contributed to the increased sound levels which then resulted
in a high level of complaints, staff want to ensure that we are preparing for the worst
case scenario should a temperature inversion happen again.
Beyond Oz Productions has indicated the potential attendance for the 2018 music
festival to exceed 25,000 people each day of the event.
Event organizers will be engaging the appropriate agencies relative to an event of this
magnitude to ensure the safety and well-in the
past.
The proposed setup for 2018 will be similar to last year and will be as follows:
There will be two stages with a potential third stage for local acts
The main stage will be the largest and will host International Acts. It will be
situated so that it is directed (facing) North East, as was done in 2016 and 2017
where the sound will travel through a large wooded and industrial area out
towards the city limits.
The event organizers have once again engaged an industry leading acoustical
engineering company to manage the sound system. As part of the sound system
design they will again be angling the sound so it is thrown on top and downward
toward the crowd; and they have directed the stage speakers at an inward angle
to reduce the umbrella of sound and concentrate it down the centre of the
direction of the stage. The quality of equipment enables them to provide
the venue. Having said this, the nature of this type of event, with recorded
music, often results in the significant use of low bass tones which are often
difficult to contain and can be detected at a distance.
Beyond Oz Productions in an effort to work with the community has suggested some
changes to their Sunday schedule which includes an end time of 9pm, as well as having
one of their lower bass artists on after 7pm, to address some of the concerns expressed
by residents in regards to Sunday being the night before a work/school day. The
reduced sound level of a maximum of 55dBA in a residential zone should also help to
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address any potential meteorological conditions, should they arise. Staff recognize that
we may still receive complaints even with the proposed changes,
promotors, as well as local businesses.
Staff are suggesting that any exemption approved by Council be subject to the
conditions that have been designed to help mitigate the impact of the music in
residential areas. The conditions relate to the potential for offensive language and the
ability for staff to work with event organizers, at the time, to address concerns raised
from the community and to have a paid duty Noise Officer assigned to this event, in
order to monitor noise levels.
It should be noted that, should the noise exemption not be approved, and assuming the
event still proceeds, the event organizers may be subject to legal action pursuant to
Chapter 450 (Noise) if or when complaints are received and City staff are able to
determine sufficient evidence exists to substantiate a violation of the Chapter.
ALIGNMENT WITH CITY OF KITCHENER STRATEGIC PLAN:
The recommendation of this report supports the achievement of the strategic
vision through the delivery of core service.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS:
It is anticipated that the cost of a paid duty Noise Officer, for a period of 34 hours will be
approximately $1200. This cost will be billed to the event organizer.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT:
The event organizers are responsible for ensuring that this event is communicated throughout
the community in advance of the event.
ACKNOWLEDGED BY: Michael May, Deputy CAO, Community Services Department
Encl.
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December 8, 2017
City of Kitchener, CSD ByLaw Enforcement Division
33 Ontario St N,
Kitchener,
ON N2H 4Y4
Attn: Gloria MacNeil gloria.macneil@kitchener.ca
Director of By-Law Enforcement
Re:Ever After Music Festival Proposed Noise By-Law Exemption
Sound Level Limits
Novus File No. 17-0371
Dear Gloria:
Novus Environmental Inc. (Novus) is pleased to provide this letter of opinion regarding the
proposed Noise By-Law Exemption pertaining to concert noise from the EverAfter Music
Festival.
It is our understanding that City staff will be recommending to Council that the current Noise
By-Law exemption be modified as outlined below and would like Novus’ opinion on whether
the reduction from the previous 65 dBA limit to the proposed 55 dBA limit will be helpful in
reducing annoyance and /or complaints from residences.
The proposed Noise By-Law exemption conditions are:
Maximum dBA heard in a residential neighbourhood 55dBA, a 10 dBA reduction from that
applied previously. The exemption would be applicable on EverAfter Music Festival
concert days for:
-Friday night 5pm – 11pm
-Saturday 11am – 11pm
-Sunday 11am – 9pm
Air Quality | Sound & Vibration | Sustainable Water | Wind & Climate
Novus Environmental Inc. | 150 Research Lane, Suite 105, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 4T2
Novus West Inc. | 906 – 12 Avenue SW, Suite 600, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2R 1K7
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City of Kitchener Everafter Music Festival – Opinion on proposed noise-by-law exemption limit
December 8, 2017
1.0Background
Novus Environmental Inc. (Novus) isa Guelph based consulting engineering firm with
specializedexpertiseinacoustics andmeteorology. Novus recently presented at theannual
Canadian Acoustical Association(CAA) annual conference on the subject ofoutdoor concert
noise in Kitchener focussed on the EverAfter Music Festival. Impetus for our presentation was
drive bytechnical interest in outdoor noise propagation,recent publicized complaints in the
localKitchener-Waterloopress andprior experience with similar outdoorconcert venues. The
technical paperwas submitted to the CAAand publishedin the December issue of the
association’sJournal. A copy of thepaper found in AppendixA.
Our opinion on the efficacy of the proposed By-Law exemption changes is based on the
research and findings outlined in our paper.
2.0Technical Highlights
Key findings of the paper suggest that contributing factors to noise complaints arising from the
EverAfter Music Festival are likely due to:
The existing 65 dBA criteria being too high relative to low prevailing community ambient
(L)levels of 40 dBA to 45 dBA.
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Fatigue with music – rising annoyance.
Variation in the ambient sound levels with low background noise levels in many of the
neighbourhoods present particularly in the late evening period.
Meteorological effects, particularlyinversions which aid in effective propagation of sound
over large distances.
Table 1 below, provides a good indication of expected community response to outdoor concert
noise by comparing the difference betweenconcert level near maximum sound levels (L) to
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prevailing background ambient non-concert sound levels (L)
90.
Lis the sound level exceeded 1% of the time during the concert while Lis the sound level
1,90,
exceeded 90% of the time in the absence of the concert but at the same time period when the
concert would occur.
www.novusenv.comNovus Environmental | 2
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City of Kitchener Everafter Music Festival – Opinion on proposed noise-by-law exemption limit
December 8, 2017
Table 1: Outdoor concert site response criteria \[1\]
L-LDifferentialExpected Community Response
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Less than 5 dB Rarely audible, few or no complaints
5 to 15 dB Sometimes audible, repeated complaints likely
15 dB or greater Highly audible, widespread complaints
3.0Opinion on Noise-By-Law Exemption
The proposed reduction in the Noise-By-Law exemption sound level limits will reduce the
audibility of the event noise in neighbourhoods that were affected in prior years and therefore
should inherently reduce the number of complaints. With the original exemption limit of 65
dBA, neighbourhoods with background L levels could have experienced L-Ldifferences as
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high as 20-25 dBA, and per Table 1, would have resulted in high audibility and widespread
complaints. The proposed 10 dBA reduction in the exemption limit, reduces the L-L
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difference to between 10-15 dBA which per Table 1would be anticipated to result in audibility
some of the time, with repeated complaints still likely.
Thus, the reduction in the exemption limit is not expected to eliminate the complaints, but
certainly will be an improvement over prior years experience and should reduce community
response and complaints. It should be noted that it may be difficult to reduce sound levels
sufficiently to achieve a 5 dB or less difference in L-L, that would result in few or no
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complaints given the nature of the event, its location and that of the residential neighbourhoods
coupled with low background noise levels in the evening period.
However, the current proposed reduction is a reasonable attempt to balance the needs of the
affected communities with that of the larger community and cultural, social and economic
importance of the event. Further modifications and fine-tuning to the limit could be considered
after evaluating the effectiveness of the proposed changes over the next couple of years.
It should also be noted that the potential noise impacts on a given community will likely vary
from year to year given the significant effects of meteorological factors (i.e., wind, temperature
inversions) on long-distance noise propagation and would need to be considered in the
conclusions derived from future events.
www.novusenv.comNovus Environmental | 3
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City of Kitchener Everafter Music Festival – Opinion on proposed noise-by-law exemption limit
December 8, 2017
Should you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Novus Environmental Inc.
Darron Chin-Quee, P.Eng., LEED AP
Principal / Sr. Specialist
Attach.
www.novusenv.comNovus Environmental | 4
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