Joliet, IL Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)
Construction hours in Joliet, IL, sometimes called construction noise rules or contractor work-hour ordinances, set when contractors can run power tools, hammers, and heavy equipment.
Key Facts
- Curfew hours
- 9:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
- Protected buffer
- 600 feet of a residence or hospital
- Exemptions
- Public improvements and public-utility work
- Penalty
- $150-$750 per offense, Code Sec. 1-8
- Governing law
- Noise Pollution Control Ordinance, Art. IX
- Each day
- Treated as a separate offense
Summary
Joliet's Noise Pollution Control Ordinance bars powered construction equipment, piledrivers, hoists, shovels, hammers and rollers, from running between 9:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. within 600 feet of any residence or hospital. City Code Section 21-133 exempts public-improvement projects and public-utility work from the curfew. Violators face the Code's general penalty under Section 1-8.
It shall be unlawful for any person to use any piledriver, shovel, hammer derrick, hoist tractor, roller or other mechanical apparatus operated by fuel or electric power in building or construction operations between the hours of 9:30 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. except for work on public improvements and work of public service utilities, within six hundred (600) feet of any building used for residential or hospital purposes.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 200).
Full Breakdown
Section 21-133, part of Article IX, the Noise Pollution Control Ordinance adopted by Ord. No. 7144 in 1979 and amended by Ord. No. 7278 in 1980 and Ord. No. within six hundred feet of any building used for residential or hospital purposes. The curfew applies to any construction site sitting within that 600-foot buffer of a home or hospital, not only sites directly next door. cutoff, so city infrastructure projects and utility repairs, water main breaks, electrical restoration, can proceed overnight when necessary. The article's definitions section, 21-132, sets the technical vocabulary the rest of Article IX relies on, including decibel and dB(A), but the construction-noise rule itself is not tied to a decibel threshold; it is a straight time-and-distance ban on the listed equipment.
Article IX closes with Section 21-136, which states that nothing in the article bars a separate common-law nuisance action, and that violations carry the penalty set out in Section 1-8 of the Code. window and confirm with the city whether after-hours work qualifies for the public-improvement or utility exception.
Violations & Fines
Article IX carries no equipment-specific fine; violations default to the Code's general penalty in Section 1-8. That schedule sets a fine of not less than $150 nor more than $750, plus costs, for each offense, and treats every day a violation continues as a separate offense. The city may also pursue any other legal or equitable remedy, and Section 21-136 preserves a resident's separate common-law nuisance claim against a noisy contractor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hours can construction equipment run in Joliet?
Is utility or city infrastructure work exempt from the curfew?
What happens if a contractor violates the construction noise curfew?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Joliet
How Joliet compares: Cities with the Strictest Construction Hours·Compare Joliet to another location·View the Illinois noise ordinances overview
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