Residents ask Bland supervisors for noise ordinance, truck signage and livestock enforcement

Several Bland County residents used the public-comment period at the Aug. 27 Board of Supervisors meeting to press the board on quality-of-life and safety concerns.

David Andrews told the board that a neighbor on Waddletown Road has held four events with live bands and amplified sound since spring 2022, and that one recent show ran from about 5:30 p.m. until 11:20 p.m. "The noise level coming from this neighbor's residence on Waddletown Rd was far more than what is acceptable," Andrews said, adding that roughly 12 houses could hear the music. He said the Sheriff's Office told him "without a noise ordinance there was not anything that could be done," and asked the board to adopt a local noise ordinance to prohibit amplified, advertised music events in residential areas.

James Bogle presented photographs he said show damage to a forestry gate caused by a tractor-trailer and renewed a long-standing request for signs and possible route restrictions to keep tractor-trailers off Mount Zion Road and Burns Chapel Road. Bogle asked specifically for signage on Route 670 and Route 738 to help deter heavy vehicles from local roads.

Resident Eric Miller said cattle from a neighbor on Kimberling Road have been roaming into yards, gardens and hayfields for about two years and urged that farmers be held responsible for their livestock. William Hamilton spoke in support, saying he has also witnessed cattle roaming through the neighborhood.

The meeting record shows these were public comments; no formal enforcement actions or staff directions were recorded in the minutes for the noise, signage or livestock complaints during the Aug. 27 meeting. The board took no immediate enforcement action on these items during the session.