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Approved 1/11/2016
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<br />OC Board of Adjustment – 11/9/15 Page 20 of 48
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<br />Karen Barrows: We will adjourn for five minutes. 1
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<br />(The meeting was adjourned for 5 minutes) 3
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<br />Michael Harvey: Thank you for your patience, we are ready to begin. 5
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<br />Karen Barrows: Mr. Rook, 7
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<br />David Rooks: Yes, Ma’am? 9
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<br />Karen Barrows: Would you have things to present? 11
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<br />David Rooks: I do... (quiet discussions) At this point we would call Dr. Noral Stewart. If you would Dr. Stewart, briefly inform the 13 Board about your education background? 14
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<br />Noral Stewart: Yes, my name is Noral D. Stewart, 7330 Chapel Hill Road, Raleigh, North Carolina. 16
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<br />David Rooks: And have you been sworn in? 18 19
<br />Noral Stewart: Yes, I have... I received my education in acoustics through the department of mechanical and aerospace 20
<br />engineering at North Carolina State University. Bachelors, Masters and PhD. I have been consulting, starting part time in the late 21
<br />1970’s and full time since 1981. Consulting in acoustics and noise control exclusively. I have been, I am a member of the 22
<br />Acoustical Society of America, in fact, a fellow of the Acoustical Society of America. I’ve been very active in the development in the 23
<br />ASD on standards and acoustics and they have recognized me as the only, currently actively practiced acoustician that has been 24
<br />recognized as a fellow of ASPM. I am a past president of the national counsel acoustical consultants. Our national/international 25
<br />trade association. I’d say I’ve been consulting for 35 years or so, in various areas of acoustics, noise control, building acoustics, 26
<br />environmental noise, some degree of industrial occupational noise. I’ve been before this Board at least three times previously in 27
<br />this room. May be all new faces, I understand there’s been turnover so maybe nobody remembers me. But, I’ve been here, 28
<br />primarily, on behalf of applicants that has uses that are potentially a problem that I had to assure the Board that they have done 29
<br />their homework to control the sound. And thus, I have been asked to come here to discuss it tonight. 30
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<br />Michael Harvey: Mr. Rooks, I’m sorry, can I interrupt for a moment? This for your records, is OP1. 32
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<br />David Rooks: Madame Vice Chairman I will tender Dr. Stewart on what is an expert in acoustics. And if he has been so received I 34
<br />would ask him to testify to whether he’s had an opportunity to view the property or the project in question here or other properties 35
<br />and formed any opinions that he wishes to share with the Board. 36
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<br />Noral Stewart: Yes, Mr. Rooks, I have visited the neighborhood. I’ve made some measurement to the sound in the 38
<br />neighborhood, I’ve reviewed the submitted materials for the project. This is a very quiet community, it’s a remote area. We 39
<br />measured sound levels on Saturday evening in the 30’s, that is, 30-40 dB A, decibels. Occasionally, below 30. But, steadily below 40
<br />40 except perhaps when a car goes by if you’re near a street, near a road. It’s a very quiet community. The kind of place where if 41
<br />you’ve got something that’s going to make a lot of sound, that sound’s going to stand out. We like to take things, one of the things 42
<br />that we do would be to figure out activity that’s going to have some loud sound to it, we try to steer it towards a place that’s got 43
<br />some noise already there so the intended plan being to cover it up. This is not that the case. In our experience over the many 44
<br />years, we’ve dealt with a number of types of buildings that have music in them. Churches, night clubs, and wedding bands, where 45
<br />you’re playing loud music. And if the building is not carefully constructed that sound can get out, especially the base. There’s also 46
<br />some issues with sound outside- I’ll come back to that base issue in a little bit- but, before forgetting, I want to mention that any 47
<br />time you’re generating a sound outdoors in a quiet area like this, it’s going to be heard for some distance. That may not be heard 48
<br />enough that you understand everything but sound will carry to where it can be heard. I was pleased to know that the facility is 49
<br />primarily in the middle of the site, that’s a good factor. As opposed to sometimes we see people play things right on the edge. I 50
<br />was pleased to hear earlier that the outdoor music would be restricted to just the wedding ceremony, if I understood that correctly. 51
<br />But, we do have the factor of music in the building. We’ve had a number of experiences with that type of situation, where the base, 52
<br />the thump, thump, thump, gets out. It’s not that difficult to control the higher frequency, higher pitch party music but, the base-53
<br />unless you really are careful and really know what you’re doing- can easily get out. And part of that is that a lot of the things that 54
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