SWAMPSCOTT — Neighbors of a popular Humphrey Street restaurant are not too happy with the noise they say the establishment has dished out to them.
Numerous residents appeared before the Board of Selectmen recently to complain about the outdoor music at Mission on the Bay that they say has become a nuisance.
Neighbors of the waterfront restaurant, which opened in the spring of 2016, voiced their concerns to the board, which was slated to vote on whether to renew the establishment’s entertainment license, which expired in December.
Peter McNerney, a Humphrey Street resident, read a statement from his wife, Cinder, who argued that the volume level cited at 85 decibels in the entertainment license is “wildly” outside the general noise range allowed in other Massachusetts municipalities and beyond what is recommended by the World Health Organization.
Cinder said the town should institute noise ordinance policies around outdoor music. Her statement read that it was inappropriate to grant a permit that would allow Mission on the Bay to permanently play loud outdoor music six days a week until 11 p.m. and until 10 p.m. on Sundays.
“I want to make clear that I’m a patron of Mission on the Bay, but more importantly, I’m a neighbor,” Cinder wrote. “I’ve been a neighbor of Dale’s, Red Rock and now Mission on the Bay. I want this establishment to do well, but it should not come at the expense of those living nearby.
“There is a saying your right ends where mine begins. Quite frankly, the loud outdoor music that has been invading my home and others until the late hours of the summer night, well that has infringed on my rights.”
Natasha Medwedeff, a Humphrey Street resident, said it was unreasonable that the town would entertain having outdoor music, let alone every night of the summer months.
“We love our town,” said Medwedeff. “The atmosphere is completely changed and ruined every single night that we hear that music.
“It might sound different if you’re up close, but from a distance, it just cheapens everything and for our town, it’s just not fitting. It’s more like a Hampton boardwalk, that sound, not for Swampscott.”
Martin Bloom, co-owner of the restaurant, said Mission on the Bay is working with the town to regulate the noise. He said when they bought the restaurant — it was Red Rock Bistro at the time — it was their vision that the deck would be for entertainment.
He said there was no entertainment the first year and they had agreed to an 11 p.m. cutoff for music with their license last year, which is relatively early compared to other similar establishments. On Sunday, Bloom said they shut music down at 8 p.m., despite a 10 p.m. cutoff. He said they asked for 85 decibels as just an arbitrary figure, which they felt was a reasonable level.
Bloom said there wasn’t a noise standard for bands when entertainment started at the restaurant, but the owners have been working to bring the noise down to what they think is more reasonable. But he said a 10 p.m. cutoff for music, as discussed by the Board of Selectmen last week, would not work for them.
“We do everything we can to be a really good neighbor and to be conscious of the people in the area,” Bloom said.
Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said town officials have discussed lowering the decibel level on the entertainment license from the proposed 85 to the low 70s. He said they are also looking at other communities, such as Salem, that have noise ordinances. According to the board, Salem’s ordinance limits noise to 73 decibels.
In Salem, he said police are allowed to go down and measure the sound emanating from properties and issue violation notices, which can be addressed during permitting or licensing, both for entertainment and alcohol. He said that would give the board a little more teeth in terms of its ability to regulate businesses that are disturbing the peace.
Fitzgerald said Mission on the Bay has done a terrific job developing a business and creating a wonderful restaurant, but the town is trying to make sure it establishes a careful standard that would ensure the success of both the business and the rest of the Humphrey Street corridor.
“It’s important that we just strike a balance between supporting the neighborhood and some of the businesses on Humphrey Street,” Fitzgerald said. “We have a lot of residential properties around Humphrey Street and we want to make sure that people’s quality of life is not negatively impacted … Last summer, there were a number of exceedances that impacted people’s quality of life and we’re going to try to bring the noise level within a decibel range that will be appropriate for Humphrey Street.”
Selectman Donald Hause said everyone recognizes that the town has to try to increase commercial development on Humphrey Street, so officials are going to need to try to develop a standard for the district, rather than work on a business to business basis.
“I think the other thing we’re going to need to come up with is a decibel reading,” Hause said. “It’s probably the most objective way to do it … We don’t want to inhibit this business from its ability to be successful. On the other hand, we want to be reasonable, so we may have to come up with a standard that we think is the norm and establish it and revisit a standard that we think is consistent for every business up and down Humphrey Street.”
The Board of Selectmen tabled their vote on the entertainment license, which is slated to be taken up again next month.
