Trustees Discuss Pickleball Proposal and Noise Ordinance Draft

The Recreation Department is proposing to convert the all-weather tennis courts at Crossway to pickleball courts on a trial basis.How loud is too loud? That was the subject of a discussion at a work session of the Scarsdale Village Board on June 13 when they held a third meeting to review changes to Scarsdale’s noise ordinance. In response to complaints about loud parties, radios, barking dogs, noisy air conditioners, construction, lawn mowers, yelling and more, the Village Attorney has drafted a proposed ordinance to define what’s not allowed and when.

It also sets fines for violating these new standards at $250 for the first violation, $500 for the second within a year of the first, and no less than $1,000 for a third or fourth offense within the year of the other violations.

You can review the draft here:

The proposed law gives specific definitions to guide enforcement officers in determining what is indeed a violation. For instance, here’s how it defines violations for noise disturbances created by dogs:

(1) Vocalizing (howling, yelping, barking, squawking, etc.) for five (5) minutes without interruption, defined as an average of four or more vocalizations per minute in that period; or,
(2) Vocalizing for ten (10) minutes intermittently, defined as an average of two vocalizations or more per minute in that period.

It also proposed decibels limits for day and night-time hours which were defined as “The hours between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and the hours between 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m. on weekends and legal holidays.

For planned events, the law stipulated application procedures to get a noise permit. It says, “A noise permit shall be required to operate, play or permit the operation or playing of any amplified sound on any commercial or residential property above the decibel levels set forth in Table 1. This section shall apply to any commercial establishment, including but not limited to bars, golf courses, membership clubs, restaurants or performance venues, and any person seeking to hold a public or private celebration.

At the meeting on June 13, 2023 discussion centered on the decibel requirements and whether or not they were reasonable. Trustee Jeremy Gans said, “This would bar anything above 55 decibels starting on a Friday night. Neighbors enjoying their yards, pools or a cookout would then be in violation of the law. I think that 50 decibels is too low and too early.”

Others agreed, saying, “We’re concerned about unintended consequences of decibel limits. ...Should we consider removing the decibel levels from the proposed law? We would like to gather some data.”

Trustee Whitestone said, “I think the three main benefits of this proposed code is it provides firmer footing and rationale, it is less subjective and there are fewer gray areas and it is good to have the definition of the terms. I am impatient to get it in place, but if we do think we need to study the decibel levels maybe we should do so before passing this.”

Mayor Arest said, “The Board wants to proceed with a modified version without decibels and without the permitting requirements. And during enforcement we can gather data about noise levels and make additional modifications.”

During public comments, Jon Schwarz said, “There is an inconsistency involving weekend parties. The law prohibits loud speakers outside – but allows you to get a permit to install the loud speakers outside. I am not in favor of the blanket permits.”

At the conclusion of the meeting Trustees agreed to remove the decibel requirements and place the proposed ordinance on the agenda of the next meeting for a public hearing. They agreed they would collect data for the next few months on decibel levels and then revisit whether or not the code needs further amendment.

Pickleball

The conversation then turned to the construction of pickleball courts. At the end of the budget negotiations in the spring of 2022, Scarsdale pickleball enthusiasts were happy to learn that the village had allocated $410,000 for the construction of eight pickleball courts at Crossway. However, now more than a year later, there are no courts in sight. What happened?

At the June 13, 2023 work session we learned that the estimate to build those courts had come in too high. At $600,000 the cost was 50% more than the budgeted amount so the Recreation Department was looking for other solutions.

They came up with the idea of converting the three all weather tennis courts at Crossway into six pickleball courts on a trial basis before deciding next steps. These courts are currently in disrepair and need work to address large cracks and depressions as well as resurfacing.

Now the Village is proposing to install acoustifence panels to block the sound, put down termporary pickleball lines and purchase nets and supplies for a trial.

This solution would address the call for pickleball courts – but might also run afoul of the tennis community who will have fewer courts available. The memo from the Recreation Department says that they were not able to gather and analyze data about individual tennis court usage at Crossway but estimated that if these courts were converted to pickleball, 36 hours of tennis playing time would be lost and would need to be absorbed by other courts in the Village.

After much discussion, the trustees asked the recreation department to set up a pilot program by using tape rather than painting lines to convert the courts from tennis to pickleball. They asked for the department to set a determined time period for the pilot program, after which it could be evaluated.

They did not give a timeframe for the opening of the new pickleball courts.

A few residents who live near Crossway objected vociferously to the plan as they feared that the sound of the pickleball would disturb them.

Alan Garfunkel of Lincoln Road submitted a consultant’s report about the noise from pickleball to the trustees. He said, that the that the acoustic fence (which is designed to reduce the noise) will make the sound worse. He said, “Someone should speak to the noise expert.” He added, “Tennis is very popular. There were 1500 permits sold – and it is played from morning until night.”

His wife Lori Garfunkel was more emotional. She said, “This affects us dramatically. Even with a 12 foot fence I will not be able to have my windows open, be on my deck or be in my backyard. This should not be near homes. You are talking about noise and quality of life – at the same time you are telling the neighbors that we don’t count. The noise would be over the noise statute. You are taking my house away from me. It is really upsetting.”

Former Village Trustee Carl Finger of Butler Road said, “I am hearing many comments about different recreational needs. I would like to suggest that you do a deeper analysis to determine recreational needs. How would the pool renovation affect this? Do a comprehensive study and look at this more holistically.”

Kaare Weber of 51 Crossway said, “I want to thank the board for considering other options. The approved site is over budget. I hope it is not just money you are considering. I don’t know why our neighborhood association had to invest in the report. There are lawsuits across the country about this.”

Bob Harrison asked, “Why don’t we use the paddleball courts at Brite Avenue instead? That has not been a source of revenue. Why don’t’ the pickleball proponents raise the funds to build the courts?”

Cliff Seltzer of 73 Carthage Road said, “I am in favor on pickleball The acoustifence keeps the sounds in – the fences work well. There are new paddles out there that dampen the noise and it’s getting better. There is a park called Chillmark in Briarcliff where I play – the courts are packed 24 hours a day.” About the lines he said, “The tape can come up – and you can put the pickleball nets on wheels. In other communities there are homes even nearer by.”

Paul Friedman at 11 Deerfield Lane said, “I am out of bounds of the noise. An incomplete fence will funnel the noise into the open side of the court. I see dozens of lawsuits about this – it causes stress and anxiety. I would like us to think long and hard about this trial period.”