Glen Cove City Council members said they would consider amending a newly approved noise ordinance after a resident raised concerns that the law may unintentionally favor Christian observance over Jewish practices.
At the City Council meeting on Tuesday, May 28, longtime Glen Cove resident Harris Pepper criticized the new law’s weekend time restrictions, which allow for the use of gasoline-powered tools between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Saturdays and only from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays.
“Christian residents are granted more time to work on the weekends than their Jewish neighbors,” Pepper told the council. “What this council has shown can be unknowingly interpreted as prejudice toward the Jewish community.”
The amended law—officially City of Glen Cove Local Law 03-2025, titled “Unreasonable Noises”—was passed unanimously by the council on May 13. It updates the city’s noise code by limiting when residents and landscapers can operate loud equipment, including lawn mowers, leaf blowers, chainsaws, and wood chippers.
According to a city-issued notice, equipment use is permitted between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sundays. All such equipment must be fitted with a muffler or sound-reduction device.
Additionally, the law prohibits any equipment use on federal holidays including Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Christmas, among others. Commercial work—including by landscapers and contractors—is now barred on Sundays and all listed holidays, except for emergency work in the interest of public safety.
Mayor Pamela Panzenbeck said during the May 13 meeting that the new regulations are “a first step” in modernizing the city’s noise laws. She later responded to Pepper’s concerns by stating, “That was never the intention,” in reference to any religious bias in the law.
Pepper, however, emphasized that perception matters more than intent. “All I’m asking from the City Council is: what you do for one, you do for the other,” he said. He also warned that if the ordinance is not amended to reflect religious equity, it could “result in additional measures being taken,” especially during an election year.
Councilwoman Marsha Silverman, a Democrat, said she had raised the issue twice—once before the council voted on the measure and again afterward—expressing concern over its inequity. “I brought it up before it was voted on, and then after it was voted on, that it was unequal,” Silverman said at the May 28 meeting.
Republican Councilman Kevin Maccarone supported Pepper’s point. “It should be the same for both,” he said. Maccarone explained that the council had tried to respond to resident complaints about noise on Sundays when drafting the legislation. “It was brought to our attention that a lot of people were complaining about the fact that people were allowed to operate at all on Sundays,” he said.
In a phone interview with the Herald following the meeting, Pepper said he learned about the new ordinance online and via Facebook and was disturbed by what he read. “It was a local government imposing themselves upon people and overstepping their bounds,” he said.
Pepper, a 25-year resident and teacher, said Saturday is his day of religious rest, and he typically does yardwork on Sundays. He worries that the new restrictions leave him with limited time to maintain his property. “You’re only giving me a certain amount of time. To me, that’s not fair,” he said.
He also expressed concern that the ordinance could result in fines. “You could be fined. Police have come to my door before,” he recalled, referring to a past incident when he was unaware of previous rules. He added that enforcement now could disproportionately affect those with limited flexibility in their schedules, especially homeowners who cannot afford landscapers.
Despite his criticisms, Pepper said two council members privately apologized to him after the meeting, which he appreciated. “This wasn’t meant to blow up Glen Cove,” he said. “But when you rush a law through and don’t think about the ramifications, that’s a problem.”
Pepper concluded by urging the council to view the issue through a broader lens. “There are so many other things going on in Glen Cove,” he said. “Let’s focus on what our community really needs.”
