Once upon a chime, all was well

The group previously scaled back the hours and lowered the volume.
By DENISE DICK
VINDICATOR STAFF Writer
POLAND -- Chimes ringing from the clock tower at U.S. Route 224 and state Route 170 aren't music to everyone's ears.
Patty Wardle, a Second Street resident, said Thursday the chimes, which started ringing in October, are disruptive to some residents.
The clock tower was built and bells installed by Town One Streetscapes, a civic group that generally focuses on beautification and quality-of-life issues.
Initially they rang on the quarter hour, around the clock.
Wardle presented a petition to village council in November, asking that the volume be turned down or the hours be limited.
"The height of the tower is hitting our bedroom windows," Wardle said.
Larry Warren, president of Town One Streetscapes, said Thursday that after the petition was presented, the group limited the chiming to every 15 minutes from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily to appease residents.
Around Christmastime, another resident complained of the noise, and Warren said the group lowered the volume.
Tested volume
Warren said he also took decibel readings to determine their volume. He said that the loudest level it detected mirrored the volume of a conversation. When a car drove by as he was taking a reading, it drowned out the chimes.
The volume increased and the striking occurred every hour throughout the day and night after parts of the village were affected by a power outage earlier this week, Wardle said.
Warren said the chimes were turned off until a technician can come to reset them to go off every 15 minutes from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Like England
The 15-minute intervals are consistent with the Westminster Chimes in England.
"We suggested 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with them going off hourly," Wardle said. "If they're insistent on 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., then they have to lower the volume."
She's especially concerned about the summer, when people like to keep their doors and windows open and children play outside.
The early chimes have awakened people too, Wardle said.
"Chimes irritate some people," she said.