No muffler on noisy car wash
Affected residents blame planning process
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PORT DOVER – Lax planning procedures were blamed this week for an incompatible land use in downtown Port Dover.
Two residents of Main Street complained to Norfolk council Tuesday that the blow dryer at South Coast Auto Laundry’s touch-free car wash has diminished their quality of life and is affecting their health. They acknowledge the owner followed the rules when the car wash was built 12 years ago.
The car wash is located at the corner of Main Street and Nelson Street West. It also features a laundromat and dog-washing station. Residents complain the noise has worsened now that the former Esso convenience store to the immediate north has been removed.
“It’s become worse than ever,” said Patricia Kjarsgaard. “It’s become a serious health matter. There’s nothing at all to block the noise.”
Janice Long, who lives in the same area, said the noise is comparable to a leaf blower but worse in certain respects.
“This is every day, and it is random,” Long said. “You don’t know when it’s going to hit.”
The pair says they can’t enjoy the outdoors when vehicles are passing through the facility. They say the noise is stressful and having a noticeable impact on their health.
The car wash complies with Norfolk’s noise bylaw to the extent it doesn’t operate during the overnight hours.
County solicitor Paula Boutis, Norfolk’s interim general manager of development and cultural services, couldn’t tell council whether the car wash violates Ministry of the Environment standards for ambient noise. Norfolk has the equipment to measure decibel levels, Boutis said, but no one on staff qualified to operate it.
Long said the car wash was established before Norfolk County adopted a noise bylaw.
She added the owner wasn’t asked for a noise study when he applied to build the facility. The car wash is located in a zone of transition at the north end of Port Dover’s central business district. Immediately north and across the street are residential neighbourhoods.
Owner Mark Dejonge of Haldimand County attended Tuesday’s meeting on short notice.
Dejonge said he did all Norfolk asked when he passed through the planning process. Insisting on retroactive changes, he said, would be expensive and comparable to asking a Tim Hortons outlet to alter its operations because someone complained about the smell.
“If you want me to spend $200,000, let me know because you’re going to get a helluva fight,” Dejonge told council.
“We did what we were expected to do according to Norfolk County standards.”
Boutis told council that new rules can be retroactively enforced. However, she added the normal procedure is to grandfather existing operations as legal non-conforming.
“The conflict is real and it is serious,” Boutis said. “The owner has complied with everything that was expected of him.”
The complainants agree.
“It’s true,” Long said. “They did what they were supposed to do. It was failed planning.”
Port Dover Coun. Amy Martin was in the chair for Tuesday’s council-in-committee meeting. Martin heard complaints about the noise while on the campaign trail in 2018. She along with the rest of council were at a loss for a solution.
“The business owner did all we asked of him at the time. The question is did we ask enough of him,” Martin said before moving onto the next item on the agenda.
MSonnenberg@postmedia.com
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