Ice cream vendor takes tunes to Barnegat

Jeffery Cabaniss' white and blue ice cream truck meandered through the township's Settler's Landing on Saturday, his jingle drawing children from their neon-colored big wheels, metal swing sets and large-screen televisions.         Their hair flowing in the breeze as they raced for the succulent sweets, the youngsters knew nothing about the controversy surrounding the music that lured them to the ice cream man.         In neighboring Stafford Township, the council passed a law on March 3 banning the amplified tunes used by all vendors to entice customers.         Elected officials said complaints from local residents about incessant jingle playing prompted the measure, which is similar to an ordinance approved in Long Beach Township.         Fearing that other municipalities may attempt to follow suit, Cabaniss took action. He contracted the media - locally and nationally. And then on March 25, he filed a federal lawsuit against Stafford, claiming his home town had violated his free-speech rights.         As he awaits a resolution, Cabaniss decided to take his truck out for the first time this year on Saturday. The weather was balmy, the daffodils abundant and the weeping cherry trees blossoming.         Unwelcome in Stafford, the businessman opted for Barnegat, where residents and customers alike were undisturbed by the man's "Turkey in the Straw" music.         "I've never heard anybody complain," said Barnegat resident Frank Finkle after he purchased Popsicles from Cabaniss.         Barnegat resident Mary Ann Pavelcahk emerged from her Longboat Avenue house as Cabaniss drove by, his music emanating from his truck.         "He's a little businessman," she said. "Stafford is taking away from the little businessman. It's stupid. He's not creating a racket. He's selling a product....A lot of us really feel bad for the guy. I don't think the music bothers anybody on the block."         Barnegat resident Dennis Spangler, who bought ice cream for his children, echoed his neighbors' sentiments. "The music doesn't bother us at all," he said. "It's not that loud that it bothers us."         Cabaniss said popular opinion counts for something. But ultimately, it is the elected leaders who make the decisions.         In Little Egg Harbor Township, Mayor John Adair said vendors' music is not a concern. "It doesn't disturb me," he said. "I haven't had complaints from anyone within the community."         Similarly, Ocean City Mayor Bud Knight said his municipality hasn't fielded any recent gripes about vendors' music.         About six years ago, some residents complained that street ends near the beach were being polluted with too much noise from ice cream vendors. But Ocean City officials were able to find a compromise by letting the small businesspeople ring bells on the beach.         "I don't think there's any need to (adopt an ordinance like Stafford's,)" Knight said.         The borough of Seaside Park seems to take a different stance. In a March 30 letter to Stafford Township Mayor Carl Block, borough Mayor John A. Paterson Jr. Commended the measure banning the jingles.         "The Borough of Seaside Park also experienced nuisance conditions, and various unnecessarily disturbing, if not harassing noise problems generated in our municipality, and especially the beach area, during the last Summer's season. We are fully supportive of any and all reasonable enforcement actions taken by sister municipalities, such as your own," according to the letter.         A U.S. District judge is expected to rule on the soundness of Stafford's measure on April 20.

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