Councilwoman Kristin Gisleson Palmer drafted the proposed law in an effort to force proprietors to turn down the volume on the often-deafening music that spills out of bars, music clubs and other establishments.
The French Quarter Management District, a state agency, will hold a public meeting today to discuss a proposed city ordinance that would regulate the placement of loudspeakers in bars and other commercial establishments in the French Quarter and Central Business District. The public is welcome to attend and offer comments.
City Councilwoman Kristin Gisleson Palmer The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. in the North Ballroom of the Royal Sonesta Hotel, 300 Bourbon St.
Councilwoman Kristin Gisleson Palmer drafted the proposed law in an effort to force proprietors to turn down the volume on the often-deafening music that spills out of bars, music clubs and other establishments, especially on Bourbon Street and some other parts of the French Quarter.
The ordinance would require that loudspeakers cannot be pointed in the direction of any exterior door or window in French Quarter and CBD businesses. Any establishments selling alcoholic beverages must place speakers at least 10 feet from any door or window. Businesses not selling alcohol must keep speakers at least 20 feet from doors or windows. The distance rules would not apply if all doors and windows are kept closed.
Violators would be subject to fines and temporary closings. The stiffest penalty -- a $500 fine and a two-day closure, including a Friday -- would go to businesses that violate the ordinance four times within a 12-month period.
In 2011, the board of the French Quarter Management District voted unanimously to support a loudspeaker placement ordinance proposed by the Bourbon Business Alliance, an organization of Bourbon Street business owners. However, some of the specifications in Palmer's proposal differ from those in the alliance's ordinance.
Palmer's proposed ordinance is also due to be discussed at a meeting next week of the council's Sanitation and Environmental Committee. The full council could vote on it April 5.