Outdoor bar music in El Paso now stops at midnight due to new ordinance

A new noise ordinance went into effect this week in El Paso that only allows bars near residential areas to play music outdoors until midnight.

Bars and restaurants within 300 feet of a residential area have to apply for this permit which costs $322. This includes areas like the Cincinnati Entertainment District and the Five Points area.

The operations manager for the city’s Environmental Services Department, Karl Rimkus, said they have only received one permit application and it’s incomplete.

Rimkus said they’ve held five meetings for the business community since the beginning of the summer, and the city also sent out 205 notices to businesses who may need to apply for the permit. Despite the effort, Rimkus said they’re still willing to work with businesses to get this sorted out.

“We’ll serve them notice, give them a chance to get the permit after we issue the notice, and if they still don’t then it’ll be an issue of possibly issuing citations or other court actions,” said Rimkus.

The El Paso Bar and Restaurant Owners Association has been working with the CIty and Rimkus since March 2019, with several questions and concerns still left unanswered, such as enforcement of the new ordinance,” according to Austin Allen, EPBROA President. “In addition, we have recently posted the permit application along with the map and on our website as a public service. We urge all impacted businesses to apply or contact us.”

The permit and map on the EPBROA website was added after the permit went into effect.

Lost and Found, a bar in the Cincinnati area, has an outdoor patio and is right across the street from a neighborhood where some residents say midnight is a reasonable time to pull the plug.

Anwar Jacinto lives right across the street from Lost and Found and told ABC-7: “Usually on the weekdays it’s not too bad, especially on the weekends it is really distracting and it’s a huge inconvenience especially Friday and Saturday night.”

In addition to a permit, businesses also have to submit a sound impact plan which needs to include a location of the outdoor area where the sound will be emitted, a list of amplification equipment they are using and a description of any sound barriers they are installing outside.

If businesses don’t have a permit, the sound has to stop at 10 p.m.

Many businesses who have to apply for the permit are not happy with the new ordinance.

Last week at a city council meeting, Allen, told ABC-7 that 70% of their revenue is made in between midnight and 2 a.m.

Bar owners have asked city council to change the ordinance to allow music to be played until midnight.

The Environmental Services Department will meet with city council next week to discuss any possible changes.

City council will vote on any of those proposed changes on Sept. 17.