S. Lebanon discusses hedgerow for South Hills following noise complaint

This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project.

South Lebanon Township Board of Supervisors addressed a repeated noise complaint regarding the South Hills Park pickleball courts on Pine Avenue at the Sept. 23 meeting.

Lebanon residents David and Shannon Kurtz attended the meeting Tuesday night to voice their concerns over loud noise coming from the new courts, which they said are situated less than 200 feet from their property. Shannon Kurtz also brought up the concern at the last township meeting on Sept. 9.

“It’s getting out of hand. We can’t go outside because it’s that noisy,” David Kurtz said.

Shannon Kurtz added, “We have to stay in our cage just like a dog has to if they’re naughty. We shouldn’t have to be treated this way.”

In a Sept. 13 letter to the board, the pair said the constant sound of play disturbed the “quiet enjoyment” of their home and diminished their quality of life, as they can’t “use outdoor space and enjoy peace indoors comfortably.” The letter also criticized the township for not consulting residents on the placement of the courts.

“By placing the courts so close to our neighborhood, the township has, in essence, violated its own ordinances,” they said in the letter.

Supervisor Robert Griffiths said there are advantages and disadvantages to living near a recreational facility like a park, and when he lived on a golf course, there were tradeoffs as well.

The Kurtzes called for the installation of sound barriers to block noise from their property, which chairman Stephen Krause said the township doesn’t have in the budget. In addition, Krause said the fencing contractor advised supervisors not to put barriers on the fence because wind loading would damage it.

According to minutes from the July 8 meeting, supervisors voted to plant 20 shrubs along the side of the park to create a hedgerow as a buffer following the initial noise complaint on June 24. At the Tuesday meeting, David Kurtz said they declined the solution because “it’s not going to do any good.”

Shannon Kurtz has twice requested that the board conduct a sound study to measure the noise levels, which Krause declined in anticipation of the cost.

“How much money do we throw at this for the complaints of one household?” he said. “We’re not uncaring about your situation. … We’ve got to manage the business affairs of the township in a reasonable manner.”

The heated exchange concluded in an agreement from the Kurtzes for supervisors to proceed with the initial hedgerow plan, which Krause said would cost roughly three times less than the sound barriers. Krause said the board will look into the positioning of the hedges this winter and potentially use berms to increase the hedges’ height.

Jamie Yiengst, township manager, said in a follow-up email that the berm will help divert the sound, and work on the berm is scheduled to begin the week of Oct. 6. The work should be done in October, she said. 

In other business, supervisors:

• Discussed a letter from Gov. Josh Shapiro regarding the Sept. 11th National Memorial Trail Alliance to mark the 25th anniversary of Sept. 11, 2001. The 1,500-mile multi-use route links the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the Flight 93 Memorial. The governor’s office is seeking input from the township, as a portion of the route goes through South Lebanon. Vice chairman Jonathan Beers said the chosen portion is a good route as it’s neither bike- nor traffic-friendly. The board will make its recommendation to the governor’s office.
• Approved a request from the Lebanon County Disc Golf Association to host a tournament at South Hills Disc Golf Course on Nov. 1 at 8 a.m.
• Appointed Douglas Bishop, assistant township manager, to be an alternate voting delegate for the Lebanon County Stormwater Consortium at the consortium’s meetings.

South Lebanon Township Board of Supervisors will have its next meeting at 1800 S. 5th Ave. on Oct. 14 at 7 p.m.