I think people who don't live on the hill have a hard time comprehending how loud those events often are. Due to the peculiarities of the way the sound bounces off the water, I think that sometimes we can hear the event better than the people actually attending. There are times, particularly late summer, when there are a number of events, and it's weekend after weekend of noise: music, singing, MC'ing, preaching... It gets old. You can't escape it, inside the house or out. And I'm pretty sure they pay very, very little to reserve that spot on the waterfront. I find that particularly galling. I don't know who is monitoring the sound level -- a city employee? A few months ago I called the police because I just couldn't take it anymore and was told that the city has no sound ordinance so there's nothing they can do about it.

I am sorry that you have had your peace disturbed by waterfront events. These are difficult to control as far as regulating noise but there are several sections of the Vallejo Municipal Code that do deal with noise. You can find the code on-line. The sections to refer to are 7.84.010, dealing with loud, unusual noises; and section 16.72.0030, that addresses decibel limits. The City is currently triaging code enforcement issues, with the priority being serious threats to health and safety. I suggest you contact the Planning Manager, Dina Tasini, to discuss whether this could be considered a health priority. Her contact information can be found on the Vallejo Planning Division's page on the City's website. In general, concerns that need immediate attention as far as public peace and safety should be sent to the Vallejo Police Dept. Long term management, through citations, withholding permits, etc. may be addressed first with the Planning Department. In the end, it may also involve Public Works and the Code Enforcement Division. Thank you for your comments and notification.

Thanks for fixing this issue!

Hold on, there! I submitted a posting about noisy waterfront events. Some time ago, I, along with several neighbors, had a meeting at City Hall with Assistant City Manager Craig Whittom. Two employees of the Public Works Department were also called in. We discussed the planning, permitting, and supervision of waterfront events. At that meeting, Mr. Whittom told us that the noise monitoring of these events would be stepped up, and that closer supervision would be given to ensure compliance with the City Ordinance that loud speakers must be oriented to face toward the river and away from the city. The posting was published here, and flagged: "Code Enforcement General".

The Asst. City Manager has not responded to my post. The first response came from Public Works telling me that the problem is nothing to do with them. and that I should be talking to Code Enforcement. Note that the post was flagged: "Code Enforcement General", and two Public Works employees were present at the meeting I mentioned. No one from Code Enforcement was called in by Mr. Whittom.

A second response came from Planning, saying that I should contact them to discuss whether this is a health issue. I might also want to talk to the Police, to Public Works, and Code Enforcement.

The posting has now been flagged closed! In what manner is it closed, and by whom?

The problem wasn't addressed, and hasn't been solved. Isn't it the purpose of this web site to keep alive citizens' complaints that are being ignored by city employees? Isn't this a perfect example of city employees refusing to address a problem, just starting a circular paper chase, and then marking it closed?

Thank you for reporting. The noise ordinance is enforced by the Vallejo Police Department. If it is a city-permitted event, however, please report the issue to Public Works, since they are the department that issues the permits (you may report to them on here at SeeClickFix.com. If you have questions for Assistant City Manager Craig Whittom, you may contact him directly at craig.whittom@cityofvallejo.net. SeeClickFix is one of the many tools available to the citizens of Vallejo to report non-emergency issues. City of Vallejo departments “close” an issue in SeeClickFix once we've acknowledged the complaint; however, this issue is not "Closed" per se; it will remain an "Open" case with us until it is corrected. If there is anything else we can assist you with, please let us know. Thank you for using SeeClickFix!

Thanks, now I understand:

Public Works say: Not here, try Code Enforcement... or the cops

Code Enforcement say: Not here, try Public Works... or the cops

The cops, according to LH (above) say: "the city has no sound ordinance so there's nothing they can do about it"

The Assistant City Manager doesn't bother to read these postings, so he can't say anything!

The title Public SERVANT really is obsolete.

That definitely sums up our political/not so political City of Vallejo....how can we not serve you today attitude?

Protect and ignore

Well, the Assistant City Manager just retired, so I guess we don't have to worry about his broken promises any more. Bernie Sanders arrives, inspires, then he leaves, and everything remains as before.

The moderator reminds me that this issue has been open, and unaddressed for over 60 days. The summer is coming, the really loud, un-monitored, waterfront events will be here real soon. Looking forward to being ignored in new and creative ways by City Hall and the PD.

By the way, if you've been a resident long enough, you will remember that when we had properly managed, professional waterfront events, like the Jazz & Blues Festivals, music played all day, and into the night without ever being intrusive -- proof that properly configured, and managed sound systems can work on the waterfront without offending residents. Improperly configured and operated systems do cause offense, and city agencies ignoring residents complaints is not an acceptable solution.

SEECLICKFIX SAYS: "Your issue has been outstanding for 120 days. If your issue hasn't been fixed yet, please click below to comment or share. Otherwise, you can close the issue."

ALUNW (and maybe a few others) SAYS: " SEE... CLICK... CLICK... CLICK.. but NO FIX, not even an attempt to explain why NO FIX. Keep it open!

Yes! This is an ongoing issue. Keep it open
(Apparently 3/28/16 I said Thanks... -- that was accidental - fyi)

Just wanted to give my 2 cents regarding the Pirate's Festival, which was particularly egregious. (thought I posted something, but don't see it here so if there's a repeat please forgive.) The Saturday nighttime concert was SOOOO Loud--and went LATE. I ended calling the police to see what was up. They said the police were paid till 10:00 and so at 10:00 sharp they left. The dispatcher assumed the event had ended. Well, the concert went on way past 10:00 which leads to so many unanswered questions like 1) if they knew the music was supposed to stop at 10:00, why didn't the police shut them down before they left? 2) who is in charge of making sure an event abides by the rules set out in their contract with the city? No city employees beyond the police are present at any of these events -- and actually the police aren't at most 3) If the Pirate's Festival was supposed to end at 10:00, why wouldn't the city make sure that there was a police presence AFTER 10:00, when all the inebriated pirates were to file out of the event and into the parking lot? Etc.

And I should mention that we were treated to a repeat concert (albeit shorter) Sunday morning -- just as loud. Happy Father's Day!

Come on Vallejo! We want to be able to enjoy our weekends, too. Set some rules for these events and enforce them. How about a noise ordinance? Or how about next Father's Day my family does a house swap with whoever is in charge of approving these events in the first place.

Code Enforcement Division assigned this issue to Planning Division

This issue was recategorized from Code Enforcement, Exterior Private Property Maintenance to Other.

This app should be called SeeClickFeel good. That's all it does, it makes you feel good that you reported something, somewhere to somebody...
After following up on several old issues I walked into code enforcement, even though SeeClickFix says that they've assigned a code enforcement officer to these issues, they have done nothing. I had to fill out hard paperwork for the complaints I've been filing over and over again on SCF.

Don't blame the application. Scroll back up the page, and you'll see a clear, detailed record of an issue being raised, supported by fellow citizens, a commitment made and broken by a Deputy City Manager, and complaints being kicked around from city department to department. Not only are city employees failing to investigate evidence that events disregard city regulations, they appear to have constructively enabled such infractions, and are now attempting to ignore and eventually bury this citizen complaint.

Thanks to SeeClickFix. right here you have one [and there are many others] case history of the arrogant, dismissive attitude of city employees to their employers, the citizens. And how do we fix City Hall. Well, as the old proverb goes: "the fish rots from the head down" -- City Council elections coming!

This issue is closed.

No, it isn't.

Just saying it's CLOSED doesn't make it so. If the idea is that summer is over -- there are fewer waterfront events, and more closed windows, so problem solved, QED! -- that just isn't enough.

This is a problem, and it does need to be addressed. To summarize from above:

"----------------
Public Works say: Not here, try Code Enforcement... or the cops

Code Enforcement say: Not here, try Public Works... or the cops

The cops, according to LH (above) say: "the city has no sound ordinance so there's nothing they can do about it"

The Assistant City Manager doesn't bother to read these postings, so he can't say anything! -- and now he's retired
----------"

and now:

Public Works says: "This issue is closed."

How can it be closed with no resolution, and no questions answered? Such as:

Does the city, as the PD says, have no sound ordinance? If so, then that absence is a problem. We know that Vallejo used to have a noise ordinance, so when was it abolished, and why? Like any city, we need a noise laws to secure our "peace and tranquility" -- in the words of our state's constitution. When will our City Council repair this constitutional delinquency from our city code?

If it is not true that Vallejo has no noise ordinance -- and we assume that the PD does not intentionally give out false information to the public -- then why don't they know about it? How many other city laws, codes, and regulations are not known, and therefore not enforced by our police officers?

No indeed. This issue is not closed!

Hello,
Per the Municipal Code (https://www.municode.com/library/ca/vallejo/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT8VETR_CH8.56OPSOAMLOLIEQ), sound permits are authorized by the Police Department. The requirements for amplifying sound are available at the link above. If you have any questions about sound permits, more information can be obtained by contacting Sgt. Bill Hamrick at (707) 649-3407. You can see the event and sound permits on the Central Permit Center webpage here: http://www.cityofvallejo.net/online_services/central_permit_center/events.

If you have a complaint regarding a specific recurring event, please email the Public Works Executive Secretary at tami.hansen@cityofvallejo.net. Based on the comments above, we have made a note regarding sound at the Pirate Festival. Tami will work with the event permit coordinators to ensure these complaints are kept in the event's file so the next time they apply for an event permit we can make them aware of the complaints and work with them to ensure they are meeting the requirements of the event permit.

We apologize for the confusion and seemingly run-around regarding this issue. SeeClickFix is used only by Public Works, Code Enforcement, and CSS. If issues are reported that are not under these department's/division's purview, we do our best to provide information to the citizen about how to contact the correct department or agency as we are not subject matter experts and do not want to provide incorrect information.

With regards to this specific issue, many departments are involved in the event permit and inspection process, which is why I have included information for contacting PD as well as Public Works. As previously stated, PD is responsible for sound permits and ensuring they are followed. Public Works is responsible for ensuring the event organization has all of the appropriate permits, does not damage the property of the event (if on City property), follows all trash/recycling/clean-up requirements, etc.

O.K. I give up. You win!

* It's acceptable for city employees to lie to the public, without any requirement to explain themselves.

* Citizen's reports of breaches of the Municipal Code will be promptly and efficiently filed without action and,

* If ever found again, may be (briefly) mentioned when blanket permits for future violation are applied for.

And if you don't like it, then you can... well, nothing actually.