Emery County planners say noise dispute tied to Airbnb is a neighbor problem, not a county enforcement matter

Emery County Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Gary Ernton told the commission on Oct. 9 that a recent dispute over loud music at a private event venue connected to a local Airbnb must be resolved by the parties and, where applicable, the city that issued the venue’s license.

"I'm Gary Ernton. I'm the chair," Ernton said, opening a discussion that centered on complaints from a neighbor identified in the record as Brotherson and mitigation steps proposed by the venue owner. A representative who spoke for the venue said "our attorneys have advised us to stay out of it. It's a neighbor neighbor thing right now." The representative also said the owner planned to "put up the decibel meter" and cameras and limit events to about 9–9:30 p.m.

An attendee who identified themselves as a neighbor told the commission: "I'm half a mile away, and I could tell the words to the song," describing the extent of the noise during an event. Commissioners noted the complaint is complicated because the Airbnb and the event venue occupy different parcels and licensing jurisdictions: the venue holds a city business license, and some activity occurs on county-owned land.

Commissioners reviewed enforcement limits. An unidentified participant cited a state noise curfew, saying a "10:00 noise curfew" is in state code (with 11 p.m. allowed on Fridays and Saturdays), and members pointed out the county does not appear to have daytime sound limits that would apply to the events under discussion. As a result, they said, "there isn't anything that Emery County or Emery County Planning and Zoning can do with this topic," and encouraged neighbors to pursue private mitigation such as a privacy fence or to seek city enforcement where the license applies.

Several commissioners and staff said the venue owner has cooperated with requests to cut hours and add monitoring equipment. The commission also recounted a sheriff response the night issues were reported; the representative said officers arrived as the owner was shutting the event down. Commissioners expressed sympathy for the complainant's concerns but reiterated limited county authority when activities are authorized by a city license.

The meeting record shows no formal county action on the dispute; the commission left the matter to the parties and to Orangeville City where the venue is licensed. The commission did not vote or direct staff to open an enforcement action at the Oct. 9 meeting.

Looking ahead, commissioners encouraged private mitigation measures and noted that if both neighbors worked together—"put up a fence, and each will pay half"—it would be a typical solution in similar disputes, though one neighbor reportedly refused to share costs.