Businesses Can Again Apply For Temporary Sound Permits, Appeal Lifted

From the City Of London:

An Ontario Municipal Board appeal of a change to the City of London’s zoning by-law has been lifted, making it possible for businesses to apply for a temporary sound permit. The change to the by-law, introduced in 2017, will now allow for local businesses to apply for a permit that would enable them to have amplified entertainment on patios.

Explains Orest Katolyk, Chief Municipal Law Enforcement Officer, “Our goal is to work with individual businesses to grant permits for up to six months that would allow for amplified entertainment. We will be looking at each individual business, considering things such as the surrounding land uses, their patio floor plan, the location and direction of any amplification and their sound mitigation protocols. Businesses who are successful in obtaining a permit will be allowed to have amplified sound no louder than 70 decibels and no later than midnight. Each approval will be based on its own locational attributes; decibel and time regulations will differ in the downtown in comparison to suburban neighbourhood pubs.”

For London Music Officer, Cory Crossman, this is welcome news. “Amplified entertainment on patios is a significant step forward and a fundamental building block in growing London’s creative economy. This will help local musicians and businesses as we head into the warmer weather. Whether it’s a band, ball game or even just background music, this will help make the experience more rich and dynamic for patrons of businesses that have patios.”

London businesses who want to apply for an amplified entertainment permit should contact the City of London Licensing Office.