The ongoing issue with the city’s attempts to implement a noise ordinance on Bourbon Street and in the French Quarter at large has made it to the front page of The New York Times.
An ad from the New Orleans' tourism bureau. (Pictured: Little Freddie King)
The article, “Debate on Bourbon St.: Should the Good Times Roll Less Loudly?,” follows David Woolworth as he measures decibel levels along Bourbon Street. Campbell Robertson, the author of the article, says the City Council behaved much like a “bachelor party without a plan” when it decided to start the regulations with Bourbon Street once a citywide ordinance fell through.
Tension over proposed noise regulations has simmered for years, but a workable solution has yet to surface. As long as residents of the French Quarter are at odds with the generally raucous nature of the bars, businesses, musicians, and crowds who populate the French Quarter, problems will continue.
Woolworth states the the taming of noise levels on Bourbon Street is more difficult than anyone could imagine, a theme that is echoed throughout Robertson’s article. With accusations of bullying being leveled against the lawyer representing the Vieux Carre Property Owners and Residents Association, it seems the acrimony will never end.
Do you think national exposure will help resolve this issue, or only make it worse?
