Fort Myers, FL Noise Ordinances: Amplified Music & Events (2026)

Sec. 54-197 was rewritten by City Council on March 18, 2024 (Ordinance No. 4012). The amendment retitled the section from 'Conveyances; Locomotives' to 'Amplified Sound Limitations,' added a new subsection 54-197(c) ('Amplified Noise Disturbances Prohibited'), provided definitions for enforcement, and created a 'violations at any time' standard based on a sworn complaint (no on-scene decibel reading required). The operative limits the city has communicated publicly and that align with the prior 2019 citywide amendment are: amplified sound outside of a building is prohibited between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. unless the sound is associated with a special event for which the city has issued a permit. Outside that window, amplified sound that is 'loud and raucous' or constitutes 'an unreasonable noise disturbance' under the new Sec. 54-197(c) definitions may be cited at any time. The 2024 amendment also retained an emergency-signal exception (sirens, alarms, and similar devices used for their intended purpose) and a severability clause. The 2019 expansion took the rule citywide (it had previously been limited to the downtown entertainment district) and the 2024 ordinance added definitions and the sworn-complaint enforcement path - a direct response to enforcement difficulty in the River District. Indoor amplified sound that is audible beyond the premises is also reachable under Sec. 54-196's general nuisance standard. Special-event permits are coordinated through the Fort Myers Special Event Coordinator (city Special Event Handbook); the city reserves the right to require sound reductions at any time during a permitted event.