Solicitor: Garnet Valley School District files action over athletic-field amplification restriction

Township solicitor Donohue told council that Garnet Valley School District has filed a "DEC action" seeking the court’s determination on rights and obligations stemming from a Dec. 2023 zoning hearing board decision.

Donohue read the relevant zoning hearing board language: "There shall be no electrical or other amplification of music, except patriotic player introductions, or play by play broadcast, honor, kneel any proposed athletic fields before, during, or after any game or event." He said the board’s decision was intended to preserve the peace and tranquility of adjoining residential areas and expressly covers megaphones, microphones and loud speakers.

Donohue said the forthcoming litigation will ask the court to determine how the zoning hearing board decision aligns with the township’s noise disturbance ordinance (chapter 124), which currently applies standards for noise disturbances, including time-of-day restrictions and a disturbance threshold measured at property boundaries or 50 feet from a device. Donohue characterized the school district’s filing as aimed at clarifying whether the zoning hearing board’s condition imposes a stricter standard on the district than the township’s ordinance and whether historical or existing uses might be grandfathered.

Donohue told council the township intends to enforce the zoning hearing board decision until a court directs otherwise, and he advised that nearby residents may have a right to intervene in the action. He estimated the matter will be assigned to a judge in late January or February and that the parties will be scheduled for discussion in court.

Councilors asked clarifying questions about the scope of the DEC action—whether it challenges only the sound provision or the entire zoning hearing board decision—and Donohue said the filing specifically targets the amplification/noise provision and is intended to clarify enforcement and applicability.