Cherry Hill, NJ Noise Ordinances: Quiet Hours (2026)

Section 5-1.6 of Chapter 5's Noise Control ordinance lists the acts Cherry Hill treats as prohibited noise, and subsection b sets the Township's general nighttime curfew: operating or permitting the operation of any exterior radio receiving set, musical instrument, television, phonograph, drum, or other sound-producing device in a manner that causes a 'noise disturbance' is unlawful at any hour, and operating any such device at all outside the window of 8:00 a.m. to dusk or 8:00 p.m., whichever comes first, is unlawful regardless of volume.

Section 5-1.2 defines a 'noise disturbance' as any sound that endangers safety or health, disturbs a reasonable person of normal sensitivities, or endangers property, and Section 5-1.5 makes it unlawful to cause a noise disturbance that emanates past the property line from which it originates and disturbs a contiguous owner or one in the near vicinity. The same 8:00 a.m. to dusk/8:00 p.m. window recurs through the rest of Section 5-1.6: street sales by outcry (d, permit only), loading and unloading of boxes or containers (f), powered model vehicles (j), and outdoor power equipment such as saws, sanders and garden tools in residential zones (k) are all confined to it, while trash and recycling collection cannot start before 7:00 a.m. under the same subsection.

Section 5-1.7 exempts emergency alerts, emergency repair work, and OSHA-covered workplace noise from the whole section, and exempts noise from municipally sponsored or approved celebrations outright. A person who needs relief from the curfew, for a genuine emergency, can apply to the Department of Community Development under Section 5-1.8 for a variation: a written application describing the noise source, the hardship a denial would cause, and interim control measures, a $50 processing fee, and approval capped at ten days unless a new application is filed, with the Chief of Police and Township Council weighing in on the grant.

The Township Zoning Officer serves as Noise Control Administrator, and Cherry Hill Police or Camden County Department of Health personnel serve as the Noise Control Officers who issue summonses.