Greeley, CO Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)
Construction hours in Greeley, CO, sometimes called construction noise rules or contractor work-hour ordinances, set when contractors can run power tools, hammers, and heavy equipment.
Key Facts
- Governing sections
- Greeley Municipal Code §§ 12-325, 12-326
- General standard
- No fixed decibel limit, nuisance-based
- Construction exemption scope
- City's own emergency work only
- Private contractors
- No blanket hours exemption
Summary
Greeley's noise code exempts only the city's own emergency construction and street repair from noise limits: private contractors' equipment stays subject to the general unlawful-noise standard at any hour.
(a)The making or creating of any noise emitted at levels that annoy, disturb, injure or endanger the comfort, repose, health, peace or safety of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities, is unlawful. Noises described in this article and section 12-370 and 12-361 are presumptively unlawful.(b)Stationary or moving rail vehicles shall comply with the provisions of this article except as provided for in the United States Noise Control Act of 1972 (Public Law 92-574). (Prior Code, § 15-131; Code 1994, § 9.24.010; Ord. No. 7, 2006, § 1, 3-7-2006; Ord. No. 23, 2012, § 1, 7-3-2012; Ord. No. 3, 2015, § 1(exh. A), 1-20-2015)
Sec. 12-326. - Exemptions designated; special permit conditions. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply to or restrict any activity conducted by any person for the safety or protection of life or property in an emergency situation, nor shall the provisions of this article apply to:
(1)Authorized emergency vehicles, as defined in chapter 1 of title 16 of this Code, when such emergency vehicles are responding to, but not returning from, an emergency call, unless the return is of an emergency nature;(2)Any bell or chimes from any church, clock or school;(3)Authorized construction activity of the city, as approved by the director of public works or designees for emergency construction or necessary street repair; or(4)The use of heavy equipment for the removal of snow from private parking lots within 24 hours of the termination of the snowfall.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Municipal Code: Supplement 6 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 12-325 makes it unlawful to create noise that 'annoy[s], disturb[s], injure[s] or endanger[s] the comfort, repose, health, peace or safety of a reasonable person of normal sensitivities' anywhere in the city. Sec. 12-326 lists narrow exemptions: emergency vehicles, church bells, snow removal within 24 hours of a storm, and 'authorized construction activity of the city, as approved by the director of public works or designees for emergency construction or necessary street repair.' That exemption covers only the city's own emergency work, not private contractors or homebuilders; private construction-equipment noise, at any hour, remains subject to the general nuisance-noise prohibition rather than a separate construction-hours carve-out.
Violations & Fines
Noise from construction equipment that annoys or disturbs a reasonable person violates Sec. 12-325 and is punishable as a misdemeanor infraction under Title 1, Chapter 9.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can contractors run loud equipment at night in Greeley?
Does Greeley set specific construction-noise hours like some cities do?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Greeley
How Greeley compares: Cities with the Strictest Construction Hours·Compare Greeley to another location·View the Colorado noise ordinances overview
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