Orland Park residents will have to put their gongs away at a reasonable hour.
That goes for a host of other noise makers they have as well.
Noise in Orland Park is one of the main issues of the first phase of an overhaul the village is planning for its recodification of police codes.
Lawyers are going through rejiggering codes in all areas of the village for the first time since 1993 and officials want to be thorough and up to date on what is allowed and what punishment and fines will be to violators.
One of the first items on the table is police codes and noise violations.
Attorney Jessica Sisler said a lot of work has been done updating this issue.
“If you look at the original ordinance, it’s a half of a paragraph and very brief,” she said. “We really beefed it up.”
At the March 16 Committee of the Whole meeting, a lot of topics for changes were discussed but attorneys pitched ordinances for noise and feral cats situations.
The first draft of the noise ordinance says that crying, shouting or use of whistles, rattles, bells, gongs, clappers, hammers, drums, horns, hand organs, mechanically operation pianos, other musical instruments, wind instruments, mechanical devices, radios, phonographs, sound amplifiers or any other similar electronic devices are not allowed between the hours of 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. on Sundays through Thursdays and 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
Licensed peddlers are only permitted noise leeway from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
Lawn mowers, blowers and similar devices will not be allowed in residential areas from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily.
Amplified sound from special events on village property should cease at 11 p.m. and not be nearer than 20 feet of the surrounding residential properties.
Police will have the discretion on deciding whether to issue a loud noise citation at any point during the day.
The police will take each decision on a case-by-case basis. If a family hosts a graduation party that spills past the 11 p.m. hour on a weekend, police are not going to arrive looking to fine people.
“I think the officers are very reasonable,” Orland Park Police Chief Eric Rossi said. “The officers’ discretion will be used appropriately.
“But this ordinance would give us more teeth to punish repeat offenders.”
Mayor James Dodge suggests that those hosting a large party should inform their neighbors ahead of time.
Meanwhile, feral cat regulations and following guidelines set by Cook County was also suggested.
“As of 2024, there are 14 feral cat colonies in Orland Park and a total of 77 cats,” attorney Donna Norton said. “This ordinance will give the village more control over the resolution of any future nuisance complaints.”
Feral cats should be registered, she said.
There are scores of other police codes to be hashed out but Dodge believes the work is worth it, given how outdated current ordinances are.
“The goal here is to clarify the rules and through all of these mechanisms to enforce the rule,” Dodge said. “We want compliance.
“Our laws are not suggestions. Here is the rulebook.”
How did they count the feral cats, that they came up with the firm number, 77? Who registers the cats under the new ordinance, the same people who counted them?
Feral cats are a threat to bird species. There should be ZERO feral cats.