The nightclub that’s home to Pedal Pub Augusta is taking heat from neighbors across Greene Street and in an adjacent historic home.
Shelly Martin, a vice president with ATC Development which developed the new Augustan apartment complex, brought complaints about noise and partying to the Augusta Commission Tuesday.
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Martin said she’d had varying responses from law enforcement after numerous calls about the outdoor venue, which has live music, karaoke or a DJ Tuesday through Saturday.
“We just want to understand what is allowed with these businesses when you’re cohabitating with residents as well,” she said.
Syderist Manuel and Charity Jones brought Pedal Pub to Augusta in 2022 and opened the OutSyde Bar and Patio last year at 305 12th St.
Part of the club’s property is immediately adjacent to the Stovall Barnes house where Jennifer Peeples lives. Peeples said she’s lived in the house for 17 years and it’s never been so loud. She and Martin showed videos of people dancing on cars near the club.
Manuel and Jones defended the club as being in full compliance with the city’s noise ordinance and free from the incidents that seem to plague some downtown clubs.
“As a small business owner, we always have to look at our community, and how we benefit our community,” Manuel said. “We have had no safety issues. The only issues we’ve had is them complaining on us.”
The club has control of its premises – but can’t be expected to prevent trouble taking place elsewhere, she said.
“Our parking lot is our area. The rest of the other parking lots that are around us belong to other businesses. We don’t police those parking lots because they don’t belong to us,” she said.
The complaints follow the recent unrelated First Friday shooting about three blocks away on Broad Street.
They also follow the Augusta Commission’s April decision to move forward with creating a downtown entertainment district. The district has been described as running from Fifth to 13th streets between Greene Street and the river.
Concepts for the district include the ability to walk from place to place with an open container of alcohol, outdoor seating for bars and extending the hours of the city’s noise ordinance.
The noise ordinance bans loud noise between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and from midnight to 7 a.m. on weekends. Special events can apply for waivers to keep the music on later.
Planning Director Carla DeLaney said the ordinance has standards ranging from 100 to 300 feet for where noise can be audible.
Commissioner Jordan Johnson said he knew when he moved to a downtown loft that he’d be hearing the sounds of crowds and music.
Johnson said he observed dancing against parked cars and other similar activities very recently.
If police “are not able to enforce the twerking on cars on Broad Street, I’m not sure how much support they’re going to be able to give us with this situation,” he said.
Mayor Garnett Johnson, who says he has a plan to address crime downtown, asked DeLaney to meet with the ATC and Pedal Pub representatives, as well as law enforcement and return with a report.
