Orthodox Jews file lawsuit against Volusia County bar City Limits over noise complaint

Along a stretch of U.S. Highway 17 north of DeLand , agricultural businesses selling hay and gardening supplies share real estate with retro roadside motels. Nestled in between is a clustering of modest ranch houses inhabited by a small enclave of Hasidic Jews who relocated from New York and New Jersey for many of the same reasons others do: reasonable housing, a moderate climate and jobs in a range of industries.

Nearby is the City Limits Taproom & Grille, located at 4425 U.S. Highway 17. The one-story, gray stucco bar and restaurant is owned by Volusia County native Pete Ferrentino and his wife Paula Outzen. A biker bar and a barbecue eatery previously occupied the space.

After Ferrentino purchased the property in 2021, things had initially been copacetic with neighbors from the Orthodox sect of Judaism even patronizing City Limits to order meals for their families.

Now, those same neighbors are suing the bar over "nuisance noise" they say disturbs not only their peace of mind but also adherence to their lifestyle which, for one, requires they observe a period of rest known as the Sabbath from sundown on Friday through sundown on Saturday. In most cases, that means refraining from the use of vehicles, television, phones and other modern technology.

The group walks to services at a home-based synagogue called Netivos which is less than a mile from the residences of most of its 50-plus congregants.

Neighbors: noise complaints have gone unanswered for years

Though the issue goes back more than two years, a civil lawsuit was officially filed in Volusia County Court against the owners of City Limits in February. Six plaintiffs — most of whose houses front U.S. 17 or are located just off the thoroughfare — are named in the complaint, alleging the bar operates in a manner of "excessive, repetitive and obnoxious noise." The residents who are suing are part of Neighbors Against Pollution, a local ad hoc group comprised of members who either own or previously owned residential property in the bar's vicinity over the previous few years.

According to the legal argument, several families have relocated due to what they say is an environment different from the one they moved into, especially those households with children.

But the owner of City Limits disagrees with that assessment.

In a recent interview with The News-Journal, Ferrentino said with U.S. 17 being a four-lane highway, "I invite anyone to come down here on a Friday night and tell me what you can hear."

The lawsuit details that noise has been a problem since February 2022 and City Limits management has been hostile toward the residents who filed the suit. Neighbors claim that City Limits regularly holds special events without required permits from the county and also features live music in a patio venue attached to the establishment on Friday and Saturday nights.

Another issue is City Limits' open-air event space, neighbors say. They claim the establishment's loud noises draw "large, unpermitted gatherings of loud, drunken revelry."

Ferrentino, on the other hand, characterized the venue as a "family-oriented restaurant."

Residents say county code is not being enforced

The bar is open from 11 a.m. until 2 a.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights and 11 a.m. to 12 a.m. the other four days. Under Volusia County code, commercial properties are limited to emitting 65 decibels of sound from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 60 decibels from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Neighbors insist noise at City Limits goes above those amounts, especially late night, but Ferrentino disagrees, suggesting the county test the noise levels to determine if they're in violation of code. Ferrentino said he has not been cited for any fines by the county thus far.

According to plaintiffs, their own testing of ambient sound from the bar has detected decibel levels in excess of 80.

Neighbors Against Pollution have criticized the county's code enforcement department for not responding to their complaints and the Volusia Sheriff's Office for not doing enough to enforce regulations.

Calls made by The News-Journal to Volusia County Sheriff's spokesman Andrew Gant were not returned. Attempts to reach Chris Hutchinson, Volusia County's chief code compliance officer, were unsuccessful as well.

Neighors say they feel 'trapped' in their homes

The high concentration of drunken individuals interferes with residents' ability to enjoy their homes by disrupting their ability to sleep and threatening their health, safety and welfare, the suit alleges. The neighbors "can't sleep," feel "window[s] shake and vibrate" and feel like they're trapped in their homes. In addition, families with kids "are scared to death of the neighborhood," according to Ed Gilbert, a spokesman for the plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

Elanit and Michael Rich who have two young children ― 4 years old and 13 months old ― moved to the area in 2019.

"We wanted a safe, quiet, green space to raise our family," Elanit Rich said in an interview at the couple's home Tuesday. "And this has become our community, our family."

Tired of a nearly 30-minute walk to temple, especially in the Florida heat, the Riches purchased the property where they now live which is about 800 feet from City Limits in 2023. They knew there had been problems with live music and other issues around noise but chose to do so anyway.

The couple's 4-year-old son has trouble sleeping through the night and is afraid of the local environment, fearing anti-Semitic retaliation, according to his mother.

Residents filing the lawsuit are being represented by Albert E. Ford II, an attorney based in Deltona, but the group is referring all media inquiries to Gilbert.

Residents are requesting $50,000 in compensatory damages and attorney fees, as well as a temporary injunction to contain noise coming from the bar while the issue is sorted out in the courts. That request was denied by a judge last week.

Gilbert said his clients have spoken out at County Commission meetings and regularly filed affidavits with the county's code enforcement department since 2022, documents which were viewed by The News-Journal.

Plaintiffs say the issue has escalated and that even patrons at the bar have increased their noise purposely in reaction to neighbors' complaints. Ferrentino did not respond to The News-Journal's request for further comment.

'Animal House' frat party environment

"I've always thought a compromise could be reached," Ferrentino said, suggesting, for example, he might add a cover to the outdoor stage. "I have no problem being a good neighbor but the real issue is, how do you exist if you've broken no laws but it [environmental noise] doesn't conform to their lifestyle?"

The legal complaint goes on to detail how the group of religious residents are offended by the "spectacle of a giant inflatable beer bottle constantly and prominently displayed in front of the bar" and that "at peak times emulates scenes typified by an 'Animal House' frat party environment of excessively loud music blaring into a packed crowd of patrons."

Gilbert said his clients knew full well they were moving into a commercially zoned area but did not have a problem with businesses there before City Limits opened. They have planted trees in an attempt to curb noise, Gilbert said, but it has not helped.

"When we first moved here, the community was very welcoming toward us, but look — we are different, we look different," Elanit Rich. "I just never expected this to happen in DeLand of all places."

The lawsuit is scheduled to go to trial in January.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Orthodox Jews file lawsuit against Volusia County bar City Limits over noise complaint