Fort Myers Beach Town Council seeks restrictions on late night noise

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FILE: Umbrellas crowd the sands on Fort Myers Beach the first week of April 2018.

The Town of Fort Myers Beach is working to set new rules on how rowdy you can get on the beach.

The move comes after receiving complaints about noise after 10 p.m.

They’re working to find a solution before spring break which is just over a month away.

For many who live in Fort Myers Beach they say noise just comes with the territory.

“I’ve lived on the beach for eight and really it hasn’t been a problem,” said resident Dice Martin. “This is known as the more hip more fun end of the island. The north island— we’re adjacent to times square— the entertainment district.”

But for others, the noise is just too much.

At a Town Council meeting Tuesday, members discussed updates to the Fort Myers Beach noise rules to limit noise from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.

But some neighbors like Vernon Karst say music after 10 p.m. usually isn’t a problem, “The music from across the back bay, you can hear but mostly by 10 o’clock it’s down”

They also discussed sound measurement.

A business would be in violation if sound was measured from 1,000 feet away.

To put that in perspective, that’s about the distance from Times Square to Nervous Nelly’s.

But other council members questioned measuring sound by distance, taking water amplification into consideration.

“What we might be able to do in one location, we may not be able to do someplace else,” said Joanne Shamp, vice mayor.

Overall, residents hope for a resolution before the start of spring break.

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