Downtown resident files noise complaint

Past 1 a.m. early Saturday, Nov. 17, a resident called police after she heard loud music coming from the nightclub Ivory Lounge on Main Street.

The resident, who lives about the club, said this was an ongoing problem. The resident told police the club had kept their doors open, which made the loud music worse, according to a police report.

The complaint is indicative of the ongoing dispute between bar owners and musicians and some downtown residents who are concerned about the impact of amplified sounds.

While an officer spoke with the resident Nov. 17, the officer could music coming from the nightclub. It was mostly the bass he could hear. The police officer spoke with the club manager, who said he would turn down the bass and try to make sure the doors were closed as much as possible. Fifteen minutes later, the officer returned and he was unable to hear the music from the edge of the sidewalk with the doors closed. When the doors opened as people walked in and out, the officer could hear faintly hear the music, but it was “not loud enough to where I could make out any words,” according to the police report.