Partly to mostly cloudy. Low around 65F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph..

Partly to mostly cloudy. Low around 65F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.

HAMLIN TWP. — A subcommittee will be formed in Hamlin Township to figure out a solution to the persistent complaints about loud weekend music at Stix.

Township trustees voted Thursday to create the committee, which will have two trustees, two residents who live near Stix and two representatives of Stix itself.

Supervisor Nancy Vandervest and Clerk Catherine Lewis volunteered to be the township representatives.

Residents living within a mile and a half of Stix can contact the township to be considered by Vandervest and Lewis.

Sheriff Kim Cole and county representative Jody Hartley will be invited as advisory participants, she said.

Vandervest said the committee should get to work “immediately,” estimating that a plan could be worked out and in place by February or March next year.

Live music has been played in the Stix beer garden for three-to-four hours most weekend nights this summer, drawing complaints from neighbors, who have repeatedly called 911 and contacted township officials.

Vandervest said she hopes “a workable agreement can be accomplished so everybody can coexist. I believe the committee can work out a solution that is more beneficial than another ordinance or rules in the township.”

Trustee Larry Rees agreed, saying “we need to move somehow” on the issue.

“We can’t do anything until we collect information from everybody, all sides,” he said.

He added that trying to find a solution that doesn’t involve a noise ordinance is preferable to spending “the kind of money we would have to spend to defend an ordinance.”

The subcommittee was formed partially in response to an 89-signature petition demanding the township enact a noise ordinance.

Vandervest outlined some of the difficulties with that option.

She said it would require contracts with the county and prosecuting attorney to enforce. And if an enforcement was challenged in court, the township would incur expenses in defending it, she said.

She said there would be many fine details to hash out, such as what noises and areas the ordinance affects, and added that there could be equipment costs.

For his part, Stix owner Andrew Riemer said during the meeting that he knows “there’s a balance that needs to be achieved” between his and neighbors’ interests.

He said various sound mitigation measures should be in place by next season, “but I am going to test it before then.”

“There’s sound barriers that are four-by-10-foot, 3-inch thick, woven, that are used in construction, and those can be placed around the pavilion,” he said, adding that mattress-like material can be added the pavilion’s metal roof.

“The other thing we have done is … one night we tried the direction of the band being over what I call the bocce ball court and facing toward the west, which I think was really good.”

He said the same set-up would be used for the remaining concerts scheduled this month.

During the public comment section, most residents who spoke recognized Stix’s economic and aesthetic value, but called for the music to be quieted.

“Everybody in the whole Hamlin Township is happy with the way it turned out,” said Karen Anderson. “The way it looks. The way it’s bringing in people and the food is good.

She then played audio on her phone she said was recorded in her house where the song “Hurts So Good” by John Mellencamp is clearly audible.

“That’s ridiculous,” she said.

Kristin Beckmeyer, who lives next door to Stix, called her situation “unlivable.”

“It has continued to take sleep away from my children,” she said. “I still am sleeping in our basement because it is the only location that is quiet enough to sleep in.”

Justin Cooper can be reached at justin@ludingtondailynews.com.

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