Kenosha, WI Noise Ordinances: Construction Hours (2026)

Section 23.09.A of the Noise Control chapter states that the daytime criteria set out in Section 23.06 do not apply to construction sites, public utilities and public works projects and operations during daytime hours Monday through Saturday, inclusive. "Daytime" is defined in the chapter's definitions section as the hours from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., so a construction crew working within that six-day daytime window is not held to Table 1's numeric decibel caps, though the section still requires that noise production be minimized through proper equipment operation and maintenance.

The exemption is not unconditional: stationary equipment on a construction project running more than ten days within a residential district must be shielded or located so it does not cause unnecessary noise, a separate obligation layered on top of the general exemption. Because the exemption applies only to daytime hours Monday through Saturday, construction noise between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., and on Sundays, is governed by the ordinary Table 1 limits in Section 23.06 (60 dBA daytime/50 dBA nighttime in residential zones, 70-75 dBA in commercial and industrial zones), and by the general Section 23.05 prohibition on creating a noise disturbance across a property boundary.

Enforcement of the chapter runs through the Police and Health Departments per Section 23.03, and a contractor believing an enforcement action was wrongly applied may seek a Variance Permit from the Health Officer under Section 23.08 or appeal a denial to the Board of Health within ten days under Section 23.17.