Morristown council defeats leaf blower ban, but public will get final say in November

MORRISTOWN — Voters will decide the future of gas-powered leaf blowers in town after the council failed to pass an ordinance to restrict the machines' use for nine months of the year.

The 4-3 vote against the ordinance at Tuesday's council meeting followed a debate that turned heated between the mayor and the councilman who spearheaded the initiative. The outcome means the issue will instead be placed on the ballot in the November election.

The ordinance would have banned the use of gasoline-powered blowers from January through September of each year. Residents and commercial operators still would have been allowed to use electric blowers for lawns as long as they didn't impose "excessive noise and air emissions on neighboring property owners," according to the agenda for Tuesday's meeting.

Councilman Stefan Armington, who introduced the proposal, also garnered more than 500 signatures for an identical November referendum in the event the ordinance failed. He voted in favor of the measure along with Tawanna Cotten and council President Sandi Mayer. Voting against were Toshiba Foster, Robert Iannaccone, David Silva and Vice President Nathan Umbriac.

Towns banning gas blowers

The leaf blower debate has emerged in recent years as more people have begun working from home at least part-time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Under pressure to cut down on noise and pollution, municipalities like Montclair and Summit have passed their own restrictions, as have legislators in Washington, D.C., and California.

Morristown revised its noise ordinance in 2021 to outlaw the use of home maintenance equipment between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m. on weekdays and 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. on weekends, according to Tuesday's agenda.

Blower ban: That grating sound of spring getting on your nerves? Some NJ towns ban gas leaf blowers

Cost concerns

Armington noted the financial concerns cited by those who oppose the restriction. Property owners with gas-powered blowers do not want to give them up for another method of cleaning up their leaves, and those who use a lawn service company worry expenses will rise.

Morristown Administrator Jillian Barrick said it would cost the town $27,000 to $28,000 to get new equipment for the Public Works department, not including costs to replace batteries.

"The question really comes down to, is the quality of life that the noise ordinance provides worthwhile, or is it more about the money?" Armington said.

Mayor, councilman argue: 'Speak the truth'

The discussion turned tense when Mayor Tim Dougherty accused Armington of misquoting him. Armington said Dougherty had previously stated the town does not enforce the noise ordinance; the mayor actually said the police department would not focus on one ordinance at the expense of traffic stops and other matters.

"Don't make this sound like the administration put (up) a roadblock," the mayor told Armington. "Your job as a legislator is to create law, and you have to get four votes to create that law. If you can't get four votes, that's not our fault."

Dougherty also took issue with a perceived insinuation from Armington that the administration does not investigate noise ordinance complaints. In truth, the mayor said, Morristown has not had many issues with the ordinance since it took effect.

"If you need me to print out and bring to the council every noise ordinance (complaint) that we've gotten, I'll bring it. And it's very few," Dougherty said. He then told Armington, "Speak the facts. Speak the truth."

Armington said he merely pointed out the lack of noise violations handed out by the town. Dougherty replied that officials cannot give a violation if they are not allowed on a property to take a noise reading.

"If the administration is not able to enforce the noise ordinance, then there's no point in having a noise ordinance, period," Armington countered.

Residents speak out

Richard Ray, a resident who spoke prior to the council's vote, presented data showing that electric blowers can be noisier than the gas-powered device he owns. He also said he "almost never" hears excessive noise from leaf blowers, especially at inconvenient hours.

"There are all sorts of sources of noise in Morristown," Ray said. "There are loud motorcycles, loud car exhausts, airplanes. I hear the train from my home, I hear highway noise all the time . . . Leaf blowers, it's got to be the last thing on the list that I hear."

Steve Pylypchuk, Morristown's Zoning Board chairman and a Democratic nominee for the Third Ward council race this fall, said he frequently has to close windows and move to another room when working from home because of the noise from blowers. While high temperatures and air quality issues have impacted much of the summer, he said, he would like to enjoy the few nice days without loud interference.

"We can't fix wildfires in Canada, we can't fix every motorcycle on (Route) 287, but we can fix a quality-of-life issue before our town and ban (gas-powered) leaf blowers," Pylypchuk said.

Kyle Morel is a local reporter covering Morris and Sussex counties.

Email: kmorel@njherald.com; Twitter: @KMorelNJH

This article originally appeared on New Jersey Herald: Morristown NJ leaf blower ban on November ballot after council vote