Politics & Government
Live Outdoor Music Allowed at Green Knoll Grille
Township Council puts limits on hours when the music will be allowed.
After weeks of discussion, the Township Council decided on Monday night to allow the Green Knoll Grille to have live music on its outdoor patio.
But the hours and dates of when the music will be allowed were limited by the Township Council. The live outdoor music will be permitted on Thursday through Saturday evenings from April 1 to Oct. 1. On Thursdays and Fridays the hours will be 4:30 to 9 p.m., and on Saturdays the hours will be 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
The hours are less than what the restaurant originally wanted, Councilman Matthew Moench said.
The Township Council renewed the popular Route 202-206 restaurant’s liquor license on June 17, but decided to delay a decision on the live music because council members wanted more information from the business on its plan to install acoustic “blankets” that would deaden the noise from the live entertainment.
Complaints about the noise from the popular outdoor dining area have come from residents of the Crossroads condo community across the highway from the Green Knoll Grille. Crossroads and the restaurant have sparred over the years on various issues, including noise and parking, as the restaurant’s popularity has grown.
No member of the public came to Monday’s council meeting to voice an opinion on the issue.
The township’s approval came with an important condition — if the township starts to receive complaints about the noise, then the restaurant will be called back before the Township Council for a review of the situation.
”If we start hearing complaints, if they’re playing music after hours or not complying, they’ll have to come back,” Moench said.
Veteran Councilman Allen Kurdyla, who was on the council when the initial complaints about the restaurant arose, said it was a case of “déjà vu all over again.”
Kurdyla backed the restaurant’s effort to keep the sound of the music from traveling across the highway.
”They wouldn’t go through the effort if they knew they were going to fail,” Kurdyla said.
In May, Pasquale Marago, attorney for the Route 202-206 restaurant, came before the Township Council to request that live music be allowed on the outdoor patio of the restaurant as a condition of its liquor license. The restaurant had been only allowed to have a stereo on the patio.
