COLERAIN TWP. — Township trustees have asked the Hamilton County prosecutor's office to look into ways of stopping “rave” dances from taking place in the northeastern portion of the township.

        While rave dances and parties have attracted national attention because of the presence of illegal drugs, the main complaint about the raves at a township softball complex has been noise.

        “Most people can deal with noise up to a certain time, but this goes until daybreak,” said Trustee Keith Corman, who has heard the music played at the Riverfront West softball complex on Harrison Avenue.

        “The main thing is the beat, the rhythmic beat that just hammers through everything.”

        The trustees held a special meeting Tuesday to unanimously ask their law director to contact the prosecutor's office for help.

        A rave dance was scheduled Saturday, trustees said, but they didn't know if it would take place.

        Mr. Corman and Trustee Joseph Wolterman said they have tried to work with the property owner, Ronald Schmidt, but to no avail.

        Mr. Schmidt makes the property available to a promoter who stages the events, which often draw 1,000 or more young people.

        “I had a meeting with him back in April,” said Mr. Wolterman. “He said he had one more rave concert on June 2 that he couldn't get out of. Then there would be no more.”

        But when trustees learned that another rave event was planned for July, they decided it was time for legal action.

        “We were a little disconcerted about that,” said Mr. Wolterman. “That's why we've asked the prosecutor to enjoin him from continuing these types of concerts.”

        Mr. Schmidt said he has tried working with the township on the events.

        “I don't think any laws have been broken,” he said.

        He said organizers had some ideas for muffling the noise, but the township didn't want to listen to them at Tuesday's meeting.

        “We've had at least eight to 10 (raves) here, so I don't know why this is all of a sudden such an emergency,” Mr. Schmidt said.

        “It's not like it's every night, or every week.”

        Said Col. Ray Hoffbauer, commander of the Hamilton County sheriff's road patrol and detectives division, “The trouble is, they go all night long, until 4 or 5 in the morning.”

        The property sits on the Great Miami River in Colerain Township, north of Interstate 275 and just east of Miamitown in Whitewater Township.

        “That sound travels right up the valley,” Col. Hoffbauer said. “It travels over into Whitewater Township and north into Crosby Township. So it affects the whole area over there.”

        Col. Hoffbauer said police have warned the organizers to keep the volume down, but the complaints didn't stop.

        Deputies have not issued any citations for the loudness, but “the warning times are over,” Col. Hoffbauer said.

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