CC Minutes - 02/20/07 Public Hearing

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a first step toward outlawing power equipment in Eugene. Mr. Cowley spoke of antiquated ordinances that did not make sense and suggested that the ordinance before the council was such an ordinance. Dick Nokleby , 1699 North Terry Street, #237, owned and operated Eugene Power and Street Cleaning Company. He said his trucks went out at 8 p.m. and were back by 4 a.m. His firm’s business was 90 percent commercial with the work done at night. He suggested that if residents had a problem with blowers, it was because of the way they were operated. Mr. Nokleby said they did not have to be run full out all the time. He observed that he had never had a noise complaint in 25 years of doing business. Jonathan Cowley , 4065 Eddystone Place, opposed the banning or further restriction of leaf blowers and blower trucks because the people who used leaf blowers were hired by local residents who were elderly or on fixed incomes and could not do the work needed themselves. If leaf blowers were banned, landscape maintenance costs would increase for those residents, who would either pay the extra cost or hire landsca- pers who would not follow the rules. Jim Dodson , 35503 Brabham Road, Pleasant Hill, owner of MidState Industrial Service, a commercial sweeping business, said blowers were an invaluable tool for the sweeping industry. Blowers enabled operators to reach and access places, which was important because the City’s parking lot design standards had made many parking lots difficult to sweep without blowers. Blowers were fast, economical, and clean. Mr. Dodson said his company used scheduling strategies to avoid noise issues in jobs that border on residential areas. Most of his firm’s sweeping was commercial and took place away from residential areas. Areas bordering residential areas were swept early in the evening or during the day. It was extremely rare for his company to receive a noise complaint in Eugene. His company used the quietest blowers available and at least three models were rated at 65 dBA. Standard blowers were rated about 79 dBA. Mr. Dodson estimated that 98 percent of the blowers being used were the louder blowers. His company did not want any complaints from customers or their neighbors. He thought the existing ordinance was effective and adequate. Zachary Vishanoff , Patterson Street, maintained that people did not go downtown because of the leaf blowers that were used every morning. He said that leaf blowers moved allergens around. He asked that the “sound shed” of the river be considered. He suggested that disadvantaged youth be put to work downtown cleaning the downtown with brooms. There being no other requests to speak, Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing. She asked for council comments and questions. Ms. Taylor thought the issue of leaf blowers was a serious problem. She had been unaware of how many commercial enterprises used such blowers, and had not considered the issue of air pollution, although that seemed obvious. She said the noise created by such equipment was problematic with regard to hearing loss. Ms. Taylor could envision a compromise that limited the hours of operation for such equipment and that required the use of equipment with the lowest possible decibel. She recognized the problem of enforcement but said that was an issue for all laws. She thought that people were entitled to some peace and quiet at all times of the day. Ms. Taylor noted that she requested that text be developed for a motion to amend the ordinance in regard to limiting decibel limits and times of operation. Ms. Taylor thanked all who spoke. MINUTES—Eugene City Council February 20, 2007 Page 6 Public Hearing