BRAWLEY – During a recent city council meeting last Tuesday, June 20, it was made clear that residents of Brawley’s Ciudad Plaza and the owner of Spot 805 in Brawley will see long-awaited progress towards resolving the debate over the city’s vague noise ordinances which have impacted everything from a good night’s sleep to a business owner’s pocketbook.
The complex issue will require an equally complex and balanced solution, and has since spurred the creation of the SNORE protest group, resulted in an arrest outside a city council meeting, and has involved law enforcement on numerous other occasions.
Mild in-fighting between several council members did ensue before addressing the core concern as a result of the broader media attention the issue has garnered, as well as allegations of social media missteps committed by one council member.
“You don’t engage yourself with this council,” Mayor George Nava said of Councilmember Gil Rebollar. Rebollar did apologize to councilmember Ramon Castro and other affected members.
Following this, councilmember Rebollar reoriented and expressed his viewpoint that he believes the city’s official noise ordinance should be reformed immediately.
“I think we’ve put our PD especially in a tough position,” Rebollar said. “When people are complaining there’s literally nothing they can do … there’s nothing in the ordinance saying what kind of levels or in what time frame. Residents are in the dark, businesses are in the dark … where do we stand?”
Rebollar said he had personally tested decibel levels outside the historic residential building and found that although it posed a problem to residents’ sleeping habits, levels were just within the designated 80 decibel range as per zoning requirements.
“And so to give you an idea of what 78 decibels would be is if there was a vacuum right here next to me. I would find it very difficult to fall asleep that way,” Tony Machado, property manager for Ciudad Plaza, said.
The small town dispute has stalled since its snowballing, leaving some residents frustrated at the lack of attention they say that needs to be been given despite repeated pleas to city council members at meetings over almost seven months.
Ciudad Plaza resident John Hernandez said he was disappointed in the council’s handling of their complaints and called the sustained inaction “a clear example of not having transparency.” Hernandez said that while council members continue to work with businesses to resolve the issue, the residents themselves feel left out.
At the June 20 meeting, a group of SNORE protestors holding signs did attend and were prepared to speak, but were outshined by the dispute between factions for and against the city’s proposed proclamation of Gay Pride Month.
Hernandez said that his fellow protestors felt ignored once again, and so left the meeting early before the item was brought up later that night.
Josh Lorona, owner of the popular open-air venue/bar and restaurant in question, took to the podium to speak on behalf of his deliberate action and willingness to accommodate. Lorona said that he has been active in city council meetings, attempted to manage noise manually, and has spent a large amount of money investing in noise mitigation in the form of new speakers, a mixer with decibel control, and an overhead shade, which “wasn’t cheap,” he said.
The business owner noted that he had personally given a resident his phone number and hasn’t received a single phone call.
“I feel like it’s a one-way street working,” Lorona said.
He plans to enclose the building at some point in the future, but asks for patience from those affected in the meantime.
Councilmember Rebollar commented that Lorona and Machado have still yet to meet each other, calling the fact “surprising.” Councilmember Wharton stated that it is the role of city council to facilitate these kinds of conversations, despite the many attempts Ciudad Plaza Residents and SNORE members have made towards exactly that.
Mayor Nava then requested that The Chamber of Commerce for Greater Brawley, which took to the podium to express its message of support to the businesses, be present at the meeting between all parties.
Councilmembers expressed concern for any potential implications for the downtown economy that might come as a result, and encouraged neighborly conversations as a first line of defense in these kinds of matters. The meeting is currently set for Tuesday, July 11.
“I invite everyone from Ciudad Plaza, come check (Spot 805) out and I’ll give every resident free tacos,” Lorona said in an effort to bring the drawn-out issue to a close once and for all.
“Let’s figure this out,” he said.
