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The impact of "party noise" is a big issue in Burlington's
downtown neighborhoods. Residents regularly express frustration at
constant noise and other impacts from large parties.
The City of Burlington's new Noise Ordinance requires that all
persons who receive a "social gathering" noise violation attend a
three-hour restorative session at the Community Justice Center and
pay a $300 fine.
Noise sessions are held monthly and include: discussion of noise
incidents and their impact, information about how to resolve
conflict, a review of all of the City's Quality of Life Ordinances,
and a victim impact panel.
To report noise in your neighborhood contact the Burlington
Police Department at 658-2704.
If you have received a Party Noise Ticket (official citation
title: Noise - 21-13 (b2c) Parties and Social Events) You have
two responsibilities to fulfill 1) pay the monetary fine and 2)
attend the three hours of Restorative Justice. These two
responsibilities apply if you are not contesting the ticket or if
you have contested it and lost.
Responsibility #1 The Fine: Pay the fine by following the
instructions on the back of the ticket. You may have the option to
do community service in exchange for lowering the amount of money
you need to pay. Contact Karen Vastine at 865-7185 immediately if you
are interested in finding out more about this.
Responsibility #2 Restorative Justice: The Restorative
Justice Session that you need to attend is offered at the Center for
Community and Neighborhoods. We will discuss the history and impact
of noise on the community, conflict between neighbors and options
for improving life in our neighborhoods. Please contact Karen
Vastine
at 865-7185 to sign up for a session. The session will be held at
the Center for Community and Neighborhoods located at 125 College
Street, 2nd Floor.
Make sure you take care of this ticket. If both the fine and
the restorative justice responsibilities are not completed, you will
risk arrest warrants and bad credit reports – it’s not worth it. If
you move, make sure to update the Post Office with your forwarding
address in order to receive court notices.
Karen Vastine,
Community Justice Center Coordinator
802·865·7185 /
kvastine@ci.burlington.vt.us
Page last updated
January 05, 2010
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