White Oak plaintiffs say city is lax in enforcement
Residents in Houston’s Near Northside have added a new defendant to their lawsuit against the White Oak Music Hall concert venue—the city of Houston.
Neighbors of the controversial concert venue argue in court documents filed Tuesday that the city has not correctly enforced sound ordinances against the music hall on Main Street, north of Interstate 10.
Enforcement is erratic because the city does not give the Houston Police Department sufficient resources, the residents’ lawyer said.
“You have a major rock mosh-pit venue in the middle of a neighborhood, and there’s one sound meter for a single sergeant to use in a wide geographic area,” said attorney Cris Feldman.
Residents also argued the city should measure the venue’s noise from the White Oak Music Hall property line, Feldman said.
“If the city properly enforced the sound ordinance … White Oak Music Hall would not be able to maintain its current conduct,” the attorney said. “But the city is giving them a pass with its head-in-the-sand approach.”
City declines comment
City officials declined to comment on the lawsuit Tuesday.
The concert venue’ s management called the latest development“disappointing” in a statement:
“White Oak Music Hall believes that both the City of Houston and the Houston Police Department have faithfully fulfilled their obligations to respect both the rights of nearby residents and White Oak Music Hall in a fair and impartial manner. The City of Houston and the Houston Police Department remain important gatekeepers against the plaintiffs’ strategy of making frivolous emergency calls for service to prop up their case, which directs police resources away from real emergencies.”
Residents of the historically Hispanic, workingclass neighborhood first filed suit in December, arguing the concert venue infringed on their property rights by hosting “loud and disruptive events with large crowds.” Neighbors say they cannot get “uninterrupted sleep, partake in indoor activities without the invasion of inordinately loud and disruptive noise, or enjoy their home environment without the windows and walls shaking.”
A nearby resident, Theresa Cavin, said her son, who has autism, is disturbed by the noise from concerts, panics and has trouble sleeping.
The neighbors won a temporary restraining order last year that banned outdoor events with amplified sound. But that order expired Dec. 30. The music hall proceeded to book outdoor shows for the summer months.
Several bands are scheduled to play outside on upcoming weekend nights, including the Turnpike Troubadours on July 21, Young the Giant on Sept. 30 and alt-J on Nov. 17, according to the White Oak Music Hall calendar.
The residents previously appealed to Mayor Sylvester Turner, who in January promised a “deep dive” into the issue.
Efforts to appease
Music hall owners Johnny So, Will Thomas, Will Garwood and Jagi Katial say they have built goodwill in the Heights and beyond by opening their doors for community-enriching events that appeal to a variety of interests, the Chronicle previously reported.
“Here’s an asset,” So said. “We are locally owned and operated, and we want to be approachable for outside organizations to come to us with ideas.”
They said they’ve hosted morning yoga sessions with Heights-based Black Swan Yoga. Another event was a “Sober Bowl” that featured celebrities, music and activities for kids on the day of the Super Bowl for those who wanted in on the fun but not the hang over. The venue recently allowed Northside High School to use the space for its jazz and dance teams, as well as summer dance and music clinics while the high school under goes renovations.
But neighbors say some of those activities were paid events while others were mandated under an agreement with the city.
The lawsuit will go to trial in October, according to court documents.