
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, February 7, 1991                   TAG: 9102070390
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B-3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MONICA DAVEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BEDFORD                                LENGTH: Short

CHURCH'S NEIGHBOR SUES TO STOP MUSIC

A Chamblissburg man who says a church near his home rings its chimes too loud and too often has taken his gripe to court.

In a bill of complaint filed in Bedford County Circuit Court, Earl W. Bowyer alleges that the chimes at Beaverdam Baptist Church can be heard more than a mile away.

That means they ring at his house - less than a half mile east of the church - louder than Bowyer "would play music of his own choosing." And, he claims, the chimes ring all too often.

"The music when played on a Sunday can be tolerated," the complaint says. "However, when the music is played daily it becomes an annoyance and interferes with . . . quiet enjoyment, rest and comfort."

In a notice filed Wednesday, Bowyer asked that a Bedford County Circuit Court judge grant him relief from the "unnecessary noise" and restore his privacy.

A hearing was set for March 25.

Last fall, Bowyer said the noon and 6 p.m. chimes were bugging him enough that he marched outside the church.

At that time, church officials said they already had cut back the duration of the chiming in deference to those who might not like the music.

Wearing a 4-by-7-foot sandwich sign, Bowyer picketed outside Beaverdam Baptist during its Sunday service. His signs read: "I love my peace and quiet, not your music. You are a big mouth, in my opinion."

County officials have said the chimes do not violate any ordinance. The county noise ordinance only forbids loud, unnecessary sounds between the hours of 11 p.m. and dawn. And church observations are expressly exempt even then.

by CNB