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L-, <br />Mrs <br />MEMO <br />DATE: April 30, 2007 <br />TO: Mike Morrison, City Manager <br />FROM: John Ohl, Chief of Police <br />SUBJECT: Muffler Ordinance <br />I have reviewed the provided materials and have found the following: <br />• The attached ordinances from Oak Park Heights and Owatonna simply mimic the current <br />State Statute of 169.69, which, in part, mandates mufflers to be in good working order <br />and to prevent excessive and unusual noise. <br />• MN State Statute 169.693 states that it is unlawful to operate vehicles in violation of <br />motor vehicle noise rules. <br />• St. Anthony City Ordinance 900.02 incorporates all regulatory provisions of MN State <br />Statute Chapter 169. <br />• St. Anthony City Ordinance 1145.01, subd.3, describes illegal exhaust noise as exhaust <br />that fails to be discharged through a muffler that "effectively prevents loud or explosive <br />noises." <br />I spoke with our city attorney, and based on our current ordinances and State Statutes, she said <br />that we have what we need to enforce muffler noise with no modifications to our existing <br />ordinance. <br />The intersections associated with St. Anthony Boulevard, Kenzie Terrace, Silver Lake Road, <br />and New Brighton Boulevard (88) are very high flow traffic areas. These roads are used as <br />major thoroughfares with convenient access to 35W, Highway 280, and St. Anthony Center in <br />addition to the Quarry. Unlike Stillwater, St. Anthony is not a destination. St. Anthony is <br />simply a corridor area used by commuters to navigate the metropolitan area, and as such, it is <br />difficult to affect the kind of change in traffic patterns discussed in this complaint. <br />The St. Anthony Police Department does see traffic noise as an issue, and our officers take <br />enforcement action on obvious violations. Muffler noise is often used as a reason to stop a <br />motor vehicle, but may not always be reflected in a citation for a muffler violation. Many times <br />people stopped for a muffler violation will be arrested for warrants, DWI, no insurance, DAR, <br />etc., and the vehicles will be impounded, which I believe is a deterrent to the violation. <br />Our office enters muffler violations as "equipment violations" which includes all equipment <br />citations. At this time, I am unable to pull out specific equipment numbers. <br />JO:vj <br />