Despite wrangled-in noise exemption rules and concert curfews, complaints to the City of Calgary about the sound from Stampede-adjacent music tents are up so far this year.
According to the city, there were 186 noise-related complaints as of Thursday morning, up from 124 recorded over the same time period during last year’s Calgary Stampede.
Of those complaints, 124 were related to the Cowboys Music Festival, a total of 37 came from Badlands Music Festival, six from Whiskey Rose, and one from National Saloon, the city said. Eighteen complaints were related to other events in the city.
The increase in complaints came as a surprise to Michael Dettner-Owens, who lives near the Cowboys Music Festival. He told Global News this year has been “much, much better,” compared to last year’s “10 night nightmare.”
“Maybe the sound has been directed in a different direction,” he said. “That has surprised me quite a bit, but I also think it reflects the community and the neighbourhood because we’ve had enough. Last year was just collective suffering.”
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According to the City of Calgary, peace officers are monitoring noise levels throughout the week and conducting noise measurements from nearby residential areas to assess compliance noise exemption permit rules.
So far, just one ticket was issued to event organizers at Badlands Music Festival tent, but city officials rescinded it after a review.
“We are encouraged by the reduction in decibel levels over the past three nights; however, bass levels remain a challenge,” said Ryan Pleckaitis, the city’s Community Standards chief, in a statement.
“We will be monitoring this venue closely with the goal of achieving compliance through working with operators or through enforcement, if necessary.”
There was a noisy back and forth leading up to this year’s Calgary Stampede between festival organizers and the city’s mayor over noise exemption permits, which also saw Premier Danielle Smith and Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre roped in.
Those noise exemption rules allow a maximum of 75 dba prior to midnight, the same as last year’s levels, while maximum bass levels were reduced to 82 dbc.
All live concerts must also end at midnight, including on weekends, with outdoor speaker music allowed for a period following the concerts, according to the noise exception permits.
“The midnight cutoff has worked really well,” said Dettner-Owens. “We can actually go to bed at midnight or a little earlier.”
The noise exemption rules do not apply to any events on the Stampede grounds.
Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas told Global News on Friday that he’s heard “anecdotally” that there’s been improvement so far this year “when it comes to noise issues after midnight.”
“The Stampede is always going to be lively, it’s always going to be a little bit noisy for these 10 days,” Farkas said. “But focusing the entertainment to happen during the day and up to midnight, I think is the way we’ve been able to strike the right balance.”
The City of Calgary is unable to break down how many individuals are behind the complaints so far, but noted a comprehensive summary of the noise complaints will be released after the 10-day event as part of a review.
The next update on noise complaints is expected Sunday.
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