Corvette Museum Has Appealed the $100 Noise Fine for the NCM Motorsports Park

Here’s the latest on the National Corvette Museum Motorsports Park’s efforts to come up with a way to appease nearby residents who have been complaining about excessive noise levels created by vehicles at the park.

The NCM was scheduled to present a 38-page noise reduction and monitoring plan to the Warren County City-County Planning Commission on Oct. 1. That meeting was postponed until Oct. 15.

In the meantime, though, new developments have occurred, according to the Bowling Green Daily News.

The National Corvette Museum Foundation on Friday appealed the $100 a day fine levied against it by the Warren County Code Enforcement Board for failing to meet the “substantial noise increase” standard outlined in the existing approved plan.

The NCM Foundation in its appeal says that the code enforcement board violated the Museum’s constitutionally protected due process rights by ordering actions well beyond the scope of the citation, which contemplated only the potential imposition of a monetary fine not to exceed $200.

“The board failed to provide the (museum) with advance notice that the board would consider matters outside the scope of and contrary to the citation, including an injunction on further operations at the Motorsports Park, a requirement to file an amended Detailed Development Plan, and an increased per-day monetary penalty that continues until action is taken by the Planning Commission,” the NCM argues in its appeal, filed in Warren District Court.

By contesting the citation and asking for a hearing, the Motorsports Park should face a maximum potential penalty of $200, the appeal claims. The code enforcement board’s decision to impose the $100-a-day fine violates the NCM’s constitutional rights, according to the appeal.

Meanwhile, the planning commission is scheduled to hear a staff revamped detailed development plan on Thursday, calling for the park to install an online neighborhood property line noise monitoring system on the park’s website, accessible 24/7.

NCM attorney Charles E. “Buzz” English Jr. says the staff’s proposal is too restrictive, and the NCM has not agreed to the new plan.

English says that plan doesn’t consider increased noise levels in the Clark Circle neighborhood not created by vehicles at the park. He says sound-monitoring equipment already set up in the neighborhood has seen spikes caused by such non-park-related events such as a lawnmower being used in the neighborhood or an airplane flying overhead.

In its new plan, the planning commission also unveiled a “neighbor noise policy” that the park must follow prior to any 2016 activities there, with loud activities having to be granted a temporary use permit. The new plan allows only six potential “loud days,” down from the 12 being sought by the park.

The new plan also calls for the park to send a certified letter concerning “loud day” requests to all adjacent property owners within seven days of the event. English argued that this requirement would prevent the park from bringing in a special vehicle for a run on short notice if it would create too much noise.

Source:
Bowling Green Daily News

Related:
Corvette Museum to Submit New Noise Plan Tonight for Motorsports Park
NCM May Go to Court After Board Orders Fines, Closure of the Motorsports Park Over Noise
Corvette Museum Begins Work on a Noise Berm for the Motorsports Park