The topic comes from Councilman Van Pearlberg, who received a complaint about a foul stench wafting from Republic Services Inc.'s waste transfer station on Marble Mill Road.
He said the complaint came from Terri Fabrizio, a constituent living on Park Manor Terrace off Kennesaw Avenue.
City attorney Doug Haynie said the only ordinance in the code that addresses odor is the nuisance ordinance. And the trouble with that is there is too much subjectivity under a nuisance ordinance to issue a citation for odor, in his opinion.
"There has to be an objective method to prove a violation of the ordinance," Haynie said.
There are alternatives to relying on the noses of the city's code enforcement officers. For instance, the Nasal Ranger is a portable device that measures odor and can be purchased for $1,475 or rented at $590 a month, said Brian Binzer, the city's development services director.
"If we could detect where, quote unquote, the stench is coming from, we can ask whoever it's coming from to try to eliminate it," Pearlberg said.
"That's what we did with the (Marietta Recycling Corp.) and they were kind enough to eliminate or attempt to eliminate the noise problem," he said.
Binzer said his department has issued a couple of notices to the transfer station after receiving a few complaints about the odor, and after each notice, the firm has corrected the problem to the point that the problem has never reached the level of municipal court.
The transfer station has sought to cut down on unpleasant odors by using a misting device that sprays a cherry smelling chemical. From time to time, that device has failed to turn on, prompting the smell of garbage, Binzer said.
Councilman Grif Chalfant likes Pearlberg's idea of an odor ordinance.
"If I lived where there was bad smells coming from something I'd want something done about it," Chalfant said. "Just at first blush, I think that's just as offensive as noise, and it interferes with your lifestyle."
Mayor Steve Tumlin teased Pearlberg on the subject, referencing his Brooklyn birthplace.
"I guess they don't have paper mills in Brooklyn like they do in South Georgia," Tumlin said.
While Tumlin is undecided about the proposal, he said the request does make sense since the council has already considered ordinances for noise and obnoxious vegetation.
"We've done the eye and done the ear. Let's do the nose," Tumlin said.
Councilman Philip Goldstein said he hasn't taken a position on the subject yet and is open to listening to Pearlberg's proposal tonight.
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Part of the "buying" is researching the area around the home. Taking a close look how how the neighbors maintain their home. How close it is to commercial property. Sorry but I don't feel sorry.
Now there's no way we'll get to have our chickens in town!
Isn't it great when there is no spending limit and the taxpayers pocketbook is bottomless? What happens if they run out of money? Oh yea, I forgot, they raise taxes and impose more fines.....