Mostly Cons on Ciao by the Beach
The status of a music permit issued to Ciao by the Beach, a Montauk restaurant that was cited five times this summer with violations of the East Hampton Town noise ordinance, is to be ruled on soon, following a hearing before the town board on Tuesday.
The law requires an annual permit for a bar and restaurant where any type of music is played, indoors or out, and gives the town board the authority, if three or more summonses are issued in one year, to revoke, suspend, or modify the terms of a permit after a hearing.
According to Michael Sendlenski, an assistant town attorney, in late June at close to 11 p.m., police measured the noise decibel level at the club at over 70, when the town sets 50 decibels as the limit after 7 p.m. Two noise readings on July 3, and another on July 5, also exceeded the threshold, at approximately 65 decibels each time, Mr. Sendlenski told the board. Then, on July 10 and July 17, Ciao was cited for having amplified music outdoors after 9 p.m., which also is prohibited.
Tina Piette, an Amagansett lawyer representing the restaurant, said her clients were unaware of the required 9 p.m. outdoor music cutoff. She assured the board that from here on, that provision of the law would be observed. Nonetheless, she said, “To say turn off the music at 9 — you would have every restaurant owner in here. I can’t think of any restaurant in Montauk that does not have music at 9.”
Ms. Piette also took issue with the 50-decibel noise limit in the code. “I am now speaking at 65 decibels,” she said. “And this may even be 80,” she added, raising her voice.
Several speakers urged the board to take a stand against serial violators of the town code. “I don’t want to close down any business,” Barbara Jo Howard, a Montauk resident who lives near Ciao, said. But, when any establishment is issued three or more citations for violating the code, it “demonstrates a consistent unwillingness to be a good business citizen,” she said. She urged the board to revoke Ciao’s music permit.
Town regulations are in place “to maintain a civil society, and to act as a deterrent to what we agree is a civil code,” Bill Akin, who also lives in Montauk, said. Repercussions for those who act outside of adopted boundaries are key to maintaining order, he said. “Ciao sets a very bad example for everyone else, because there is no punishment. When that happens you lose the effectiveness of the deterrent.”
“I think enough is enough. Take the license away,” Bob Mulligan urged the board.
Tom Bogdan, who lives a mile from Ciao in Montauk, said that he had gone there last weekend to see what was going on for himself. There was “earsplitting music” after 9 p.m., he said. It showed “contempt of the law,” he said, when the restaurant knew last weekend “that they broke the law five times, and they are going to be judged here today.” The audience applauded.
John Allen, who lives at Rough Riders Landing near Ciao and the Montauk train station, said he can hear music from the restaurant over the sound of the trains, and also hears the sounds of music and crowds at other Montauk hotspots: the Surf Lodge, Navy Beach, and sometimes Ruschmeyer’s as well.
“When people just don’t care, they just keep on doing what they want to do. . . . The answer is we have to stop it before it gets worse,” Mr. Allen said.
Ms. Piette raised a legal question regarding the permit hearing process. “A summons is not worth the piece of paper it is written on,” she said. In her opinion, the town board lacked the authority to hold the music permit hearing. A hearing should not take place until a court has adjudicated charges that have been filed but not yet been proven, she said.
Ciao is “trying to be good neighbors,” Ms. Piette said. The first three citations, for loud music, were issued to a promoter the restaurant had hired, but who was let go on July 7 after the third summons, she said.
Although Councilman Peter Van Scoyoc advocated closing the hearing on Tuesday after the comments were heard, the board agreed, at Supervisor Larry Cantwell’s suggestion, to leave the hearing open a week for written comment. Once the hearing closes, the board will have 15 days to make its decision.
One option, under the code, is to require the installation of soundproofing as a prerequisite to a music permit. Noise disturbance from live music at the Stephen Talkhouse in Amagansett was eliminated, said Rona Klopman, an Amagansett resident, after the club voluntarily installed soundproofing. That was a business acting as a good neighbor, she said.