Common Room outdoor stage closure: Hastings mayor says inner-city noise restrictions ‘best practice’

Hastings District Council said the 50-decibel limit after 10pm for commercial premises like Common Room had been in place since 2015. Photo / Warren Buckland

The mayor of Hastings says noise restrictions in the city centre which have prompted the closure of a popular live music venue’s outdoor stage are “best practice”.

Popular Hastings live music venue and bar Common Room has announced it can no longer run its outdoor music events after a complaint invoked council noise restrictions.

Bar owner Gerard Barron said Hastings District Council had warned him about the noise levels of musical performances exceeding 50 decibels after 10pm after they got a complaint from nearby hotel Quest Hastings.

The 50-decibel limit from 10pm to 7am is part of the existing district plan rules for Hastings commercial zones, which have been in place since 2015.

Quest Hastings franchise owner Scott Bellingham said earlier there had been two complaints from Quest guests about noise from Common Room late at night that he had phoned Hastings District Council about, one in December and one in January.

Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst confirmed this was a new issue as it’s the first complaint that’s been made to council about the venue, due to live music being played outdoors rather than indoors.

“We appreciate that the Common Room is an important contributor to the vibrancy of our city centre,” Hazlehurst said.

Barron told Hawke’s Bay Today the outdoor stage had been in place in the garden bar for a few years.

Hastings District Council said the 50-decibel limit after 10pm for commercial premises like Common Room had been in place since 2015. Photo / Warren Buckland

Hazlehurst said the 50-decibel limit at night was based on best-practice limits and it was a level found in many city centres around the country.

For comparison, in Napier City Council’s proposed district plan, the city centre zone has an average noise limit of 50dB from 10pm to 7am except from 10pm to midnight on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and the day before public holidays, when it is lifted to 60dB.

Centre zones excluding the city centre in Napier always have a limit of 50dB from 10pm to 7am.

“Cities around the world have accommodation offerings next to entertainment precincts, and we all need to work together to come up with a solution that works for everyone,” Hazlehurst said.

She noted Bellingham had offered to work with Barron to support live music being played and the comfort of the hotel guests, and said the council was open to discussing options around how it could enable different activities like this in the city.

Audio engineer Rowan Smith told Hawke’s Bay Today he felt 50dB was very quiet and he did not believe there would be any reason to complain about noise at that level.

“I’ve just walked outside here in residential New Plymouth and taken a reading, and I’m measuring between 50-60dB. All I am hearing is crickets and background - far, far off - traffic noise,” Smith said.

James Pocock joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2021 and writes breaking news and features, with a focus on environment, local government and post-cyclone issues in the region. He has a keen interest in finding the bigger picture in research and making it more accessible to audiences. He lives in Napier. You can contact him via james.pocock@nzme.co.nz.