Penny Pruett lives is a rural residential area tucked at SE 60 Avenue and SE 50 Road, about 11 miles southeast of Great Bend. But, despite this bucolic setting, she complained to the Barton County Commission Wednesday morning about a neighbor who plays music too loud.

“You can probably hear it in Great Bend,” she said. She was approaching commissioners about what can be done and the possibility of the county enacting a “nuisance ordinance.”

However, there isn’t much the county can do, at least for now. 

“There is no Kansas statute for disturbing the peace in rural areas,” said Sheriff Brian Bellendir. One of his deputies responded to Pruett’s complaint and suggested she talk to the commission.

She can file a civil action against the individual, Bellendir said. But, taking the person to court is her only recourse under the current rules.

“It’s a slippery slope,” he said of passing some sort of county nuisance resolution. It could be interpreted as covering oil field machinery, target practice or agricultural equipment.

“I feel for you,” District 5 Commissioner Jennifer Schartz said. “I understand.”

But, she said, “it is a rock and a hard place for the county.” While cities can regulate noise, trash and other nuisances, counties don’t have that leeway.

Often, she said, folks move to rural areas so they don’t have to follow the more stringent urban guidelines.

Nonetheless, County Counselor Patrick Hoffman said he would look into what other counties do and try to craft something. He stressed that both Bellendir and County Attorney Levi Morris would need to be in on the discussion to assure it could be enforced and that citations could be prosecuted.