UPDATE: Friends of Val Air Ballroom Release Statement, Supporting Data

In an email blast Monday afternoon by the Val Air Ballroom, the volunteer leader of the Friends of the Val Air Ballroom is questioning whether an online petition asking that the venue be exempt from the city’s noise ordinance will get a fair hearing before the West Des Moines City Council.

In a workshop session following tonight’s regular council meeting at 5:30, the council will hear from both sides of a long-simmering dispute between Val Air supporters who think the venue should be exempt from West Des Moines’ sound ordinance and nearby residents who think low-frequency bass noise is eroding their quality of life.

In the email blast, Friends of the Val Air organizer Edye Beckerman called the council’s desire for a “win-win” solution a “lofty aspiration,” but said her group is “less confident that a solution appeasing 100 percent of everyone can be obtained.”

The group released the following statement:

"Tonight's Sound Workshop being held at West Des Moines' City Hall will hopefully be the final discussion on the sound that is produced by the Val Air Ballroom.

• In 2011, 28 residents comprised 82 complaints against the Val Air.
• Of the 28 residents: 5 residents live in WDM / 23 residents live in DSM
• Of the 82 complaints: 80% (or 66 complaints) came from 12 residents; 61% (or 50 complaints) came from only 6 residents. More than half of all the complaints driven at the Val Air in 2011 came from 6 residents!

With 82 complaints against the Val Air, we understand the City of West Des Moines' efforts to facilitate a resolution we do not think exists. Going directly to the closest residents to the Val Air, including those neighbors in Des Moines, we were told on numerous occasions that the sound leaving the Val Air is just not intrusive enough to jeopardize its operations.

The three petitions asking for "Exemption from Any and All Sound Ordinances" for the Val Air produced the following facts and figures:

• Of the closest 205 WDM residents spoken to, 183 signed for exemption. 90% of the closest neighbors want the Val Air exempt from the sound ordinance. And we are certain that percentage is even greater as we move further into West Des Moines.
• 60-80% of all Waterbury residents support the Val Air in its protection from the ordinance as well. Of the 23 residents who called in complaints against the Val Air, 44 of their direct neighbors in Waterbury signed the petition of exemption with no hesitation.
• 1,260 people have signed online.

So many people from the very far to the very close love the Val Air Ballroom. It is culturally significant and is an economic engine for the Greater Des Moines area. Many are exhausted with this particular issue and are ready for council to take a stand

Are they agents of the People of West Des Moines who are requesting that they protect the Val Air from a very vocal minority or will they continue to place undue hardship that could once again jeopardize the ballroom's existence? Tonight, the Friends of the Val Air intend to hold City Council accountable to the petitions that were submitted to them."

Two weeks ago, Beckerman presented the council with a petition bearing 1,250 signatures obtained online and another 44 obtained during a Waterbury Neighborhood canvas.

The petition was in response to an awareness campaign residents of Des Moines’ Waterbury Neighborhood have conducted to try to sway West Des Moines officials into toughening the city’s sound ordinance. The Val Air has received three noise ordinance violations, two of which have been adjudicated, within a year, which could trigger penalties against the venerable West Des Moines institution.

At the meeting two weeks ago, Bill Brown, 6055 N. Waterbury Drive, said he was offended at the idea of exempting the ballroom from the city’s sound ordinance.

“I’m frankly offended the Val Air would seek to exempt themselves,” hesaid. “It’s sort of like if you had a company that polluted the air or water seeking to exempt themselves.”

Brown was involved negotiating an uneasy truce between the Val Air and Waterbury residents two years ago as West Des Moines was considering its sound ordinance.

“Frankly, Waterbury residents thought it was too lenient, but decided to give it a try,” he said. “Despite the leniency, they’ve received three citations and are now trying to exempt themselves. … I would hope you would not entertain the petition to exempt them. … It sends the wrong message.”

Chewi Lockhart, the Val Air’s general manager, has said that too heavy a hand by city officials  could effectively close the venue’s doors. Val Air, owned by Zamora Entertainment, is already having trouble breaking even financially, and lowering the volume or restricting hours could cause the Val Air to lose some concerts that bring in the biggest crowds.

Lockhart said additional soundproofing could cost the Val Air up to $235,000 – $35,000 to add foam insulation above the state and $200,000 to add foam insulation to the roof.

“But that doesn’t guarantee it will stop the low-end frequencies,” he said. “So we’re spending $200,000 on a solution that might not be a solution, or that you won’t know if it is a solution until afterward.”

Lockhart said the complaining neighbors could spend $2,000 soundproof the bedrooms of their homes for much less, and cut out all ambient noise – that from concert venues, and also noise form the freeway, airport and railroad tracks – a step he would take “if I was living in a home I loved and did not want to move away from.”