The Observation Deck

Sound barriers? How about they just close the huge windows they leave open!

It wasn't quiet on Rockway ... I was out working on my porch (replacing some old lumber on it, stripping it, and getting it ready for a new coat of paint), and the teenaged son of my next-door neighbor was out in the yard, dressed in coveralls and wearing a mask from the "Halloween" movie. A couple of his buddies were there, and they were videotaping him stabbing a stuffed animal repeatedly with a large butcher knife, and they were also wrestling around, and yelling at each other with an amazing amount of profanity. Across the street from them is a family with two young daughters, probably around 3 and 4, but thankfully, they were not outside playing as usual ... their mother probably kept them inside to keep them from seeing the idiots at play or having to hear the nonstop swearing. It was a nonstop array of F-bombs left and right. At one point the teen's older sister came out with her toddler son, and wanted the teen to move his car so that they could go somewhere in her car. So he got in his car, and his buddies jumped on the roof of his car and the trunk, and he got out and swore very loudly at them as well ... right in front of his toddler nephew. Very classy! They of course, continued to swear at him nonstop too. The mother of this future brain surgeon did come outside ... did she yell at him to quit swearing or to quit doing what they were doing? Nope, she just yelled at the two other fine upstanding citizens to get off the car while he was trying to back it up. They continued to frolic for about the next half hour or so, even though families were walking by on the sidewalk with their children.

Yes, it would have been nice if there would have been peace and quiet on my street. I would love to think that next year the teen would go away to college like his older brother did, but judging from hearing his conversation with his playmates, I don't think school is in his future, much less his present. He'll probably live with his parents for years to come.

I'm only a couple of decades removed from my teen years, but I don't remember spending them yelling profane insults at the top of my lungs at my friends, who would be yelling back just as profane replies. Is that supposed to be fun? I did ask another neighbor once why no one ever told the kid to shut up, or asked his parents to reign him in, and he just shrugged and said that no one wanted to cause any trouble, or get their cars keyed or their houses vandalized.

I think this is one of the problems we face as a society ... the breakdown of civility and manners. When I was a kid, that sort of behavior would have never been tolerated. If I was screwing around like that, my parents would have cracked down on me, and no neighbor would have hesitated to tell me to shut up (and given that I grew up in a neighborhood full of big burly autoworkers, I would have shut the hell up immediately!). Everyone looked out for everyone else, was considerate of their neighbors needs, didn't listen to overly loud music, etc. But nowadays, we don't seem to do that. We seem to live more in fear than anything else ... this kid next door has never done any vandalism or anything from what I've been told, but there's always the fear that he "might" if anyone tries to discipline him. Is that insane or what?

Perhaps I should have said something, but I mostly just shook my head at their stupidity, and wondered why the parents let them run wild.

Donald Farris wrote:Hi,
Monday night around midnight I was out for a walk. It was a beautiful night. Stars shining bright and all was quiet. Except for the bars of the West End. I was surprised to realize the noise I was hearing in the distance was coming from over there. At night the sound carries. I wish they would work harder at constructing sound barriers at their sites.

Don

Isn't this a little disingenuous? Didn't you just sell the Farris building to Tony George? Possibly the very bar you are complaining about? This is like calling a meeting on why the parks look bad, and the people calling the meeting cut the summer workers budget that included the parks!

Or is this a way to get the wall around Clifton Park built for your gated community?

The sound barriers have caused a real problem in Rocky River. The homes next to the freeway hear nothing, but homes twenty blocks away now hear the freeway as if they lived next to it.

FWIW


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Jim O'Bryan wrote: Isn't this a little disingenuous?
...
This is like calling a meeting on why the parks look bad, and the people calling the meeting cut the summer workers budget that included the parks!

c. dawson wrote:It wasn't quiet on Rockway ... I was out working on my porch (replacing some old lumber on it, stripping it, and getting it ready for a new coat of paint), and the teenaged son of my next-door neighbor was out in the yard, dressed in coveralls and wearing a mask from the "Halloween" movie. A couple of his buddies were there, and they were videotaping him stabbing a stuffed animal repeatedly with a large butcher knife, and they were also wrestling around, and yelling at each other with an amazing amount of profanity. Across the street from them is a family with two young daughters, probably around 3 and 4, but thankfully, they were not outside playing as usual ... their mother probably kept them inside to keep them from seeing the idiots at play or having to hear the nonstop swearing. It was a nonstop array of F-bombs left and right. At one point the teen's older sister came out with her toddler son, and wanted the teen to move his car so that they could go somewhere in her car. So he got in his car, and his buddies jumped on the roof of his car and the trunk, and he got out and swore very loudly at them as well ... right in front of his toddler nephew. Very classy! They of course, continued to swear at him nonstop too. The mother of this future brain surgeon did come outside ... did she yell at him to quit swearing or to quit doing what they were doing? Nope, she just yelled at the two other fine upstanding citizens to get off the car while he was trying to back it up. They continued to frolic for about the next half hour or so, even though families were walking by on the sidewalk with their children.

Yes, it would have been nice if there would have been peace and quiet on my street. I would love to think that next year the teen would go away to college like his older brother did, but judging from hearing his conversation with his playmates, I don't think school is in his future, much less his present. He'll probably live with his parents for years to come.

I'm only a couple of decades removed from my teen years, but I don't remember spending them yelling profane insults at the top of my lungs at my friends, who would be yelling back just as profane replies. Is that supposed to be fun? I did ask another neighbor once why no one ever told the kid to shut up, or asked his parents to reign him in, and he just shrugged and said that no one wanted to cause any trouble, or get their cars keyed or their houses vandalized.

I think this is one of the problems we face as a society ... the breakdown of civility and manners. When I was a kid, that sort of behavior would have never been tolerated. If I was screwing around like that, my parents would have cracked down on me, and no neighbor would have hesitated to tell me to shut up (and given that I grew up in a neighborhood full of big burly autoworkers, I would have shut the hell up immediately!). Everyone looked out for everyone else, was considerate of their neighbors needs, didn't listen to overly loud music, etc. But nowadays, we don't seem to do that. We seem to live more in fear than anything else ... this kid next door has never done any vandalism or anything from what I've been told, but there's always the fear that he "might" if anyone tries to discipline him. Is that insane or what?

Perhaps I should have said something, but I mostly just shook my head at their stupidity, and wondered why the parents let them run wild.

Wow. You just described the nonsense we have to deal with on Wyandotte.

C. Dawson/Rick

As we have found Birdtown to be pretty quiet we will be moving into other neighborhoods, Rockway is on my list, as is Wynadote. If you two would like to join us let me know.


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Jim O'Bryan wrote:If you two would like to join us let me know.
.

I wouldn't mind.

Don't walk down Elbur ave. tonight (off Clifton) I heard there is a local, talented, and famous musician who is going to be on that street giving someone a private music lesson. I suspect it's going to be the noisiest street in town!

Seems to be annoying people wherever you go, luckily my new place on Chesterland is peaceful and great neighbors. Sure there is some noise usually coming from the bars on Madison, but that is expected and not a problem.

If I had annoying teenagers next to me I would probably have to talk to them about the issue (or their parents) or simply turn on my lawnmower in the drive to drown them out.

J Hrlec wrote:or simply turn on my lawnmower in the drive to drown them out.

Use a snowblower. Much more effective.

Jim,

For the most part, Rockway is quiet at the northern end. There's a guy a few houses down who practices his drums in the evening periodically, but it's usually early in the evening and doesn't last long ... and usually the main noise on the street is the sound of little kids playing, which I happen to find delightful (though I am amazed at how much shrieking they can do!). But for some reason, the kid next door is incredibly loud all the time, especially when he's with his friends. And there's some teens down the street who are also loud, though they usually come up to my neighbor's house to be loud with the kid. I'm often amazed, because they're just sitting there on the porch, but yet they're yelling obscenities at each other randomly. I'm not sure what's up with that.

You might periodically hear some lawnmowers, which aren't an evil sound ... though I do wonder at the logic of having a $400 power mower when our lawns are about 20 feet wide by 8 feet deep ... it takes me all of 5 minutes to do my front lawn with a manual reel mower, and there's virtually no noise!

But aside from the Loud Family, Rockway's a nice street. Folks are pleasant to each other, and if anything, you'll probably find a lot of people walking the sidewalks in the evening.

And me, scraping the damn porch, or working with my dad's help to replace some old rotted lumber!

c. dawson wrote:Jim,

For the most part, Rockway is quiet at the northern end. There's a guy a few houses down who practices his drums in the evening periodically, but it's usually early in the evening and doesn't last long ... and usually the main noise on the street is the sound of little kids playing, which I happen to find delightful (though I am amazed at how much shrieking they can do!). But for some reason, the kid next door is incredibly loud all the time, especially when he's with his friends. And there's some teens down the street who are also loud, though they usually come up to my neighbor's house to be loud with the kid. I'm often amazed, because they're just sitting there on the porch, but yet they're yelling obscenities at each other randomly. I'm not sure what's up with that.

You might periodically hear some lawnmowers, which aren't an evil sound ... though I do wonder at the logic of having a $400 power mower when our lawns are about 20 feet wide by 8 feet deep ... it takes me all of 5 minutes to do my front lawn with a manual reel mower, and there's virtually no noise!

But aside from the Loud Family, Rockway's a nice street. Folks are pleasant to each other, and if anything, you'll probably find a lot of people walking the sidewalks in the evening.

And me, scraping the damn porch, or working with my dad's help to replace some old rotted lumber!

C. Dawson

I am on Rockway at least twice a day, and I used to walk it 8 times a day. I understand what you are saying, but I always get a laugh out of perceptions.

Two house from John Craighead's was a kid that used to threaten us with razor blades and knives everyday on the way home from school.

The same guys had a hillbilly race car and would run the engine while working on it until past midnight. The we had the guy half way up the hill that raced pigeons, and on a summer night I swear I could hear them from my house.

Still, it is a different world, and the one thing I know is that 98% want to be able to relax in their house when they get home.

Would be happy mto walk or porch sit with you.

.

Jim you said:

Don

Isn't this a little disingenuous? Didn't you just sell the Farris building to Tony George? Possibly the very bar you are complaining about?

Jim, could you possibly be over reacting just a little?

We did sell a business which included the building to Tony George in November of last year. We had invested in it heavily during the time that we owned it. Since buying it, Mr. Geoge has likewise invested heavily in it. He hasn't changed it from the office building that it was. I think he has worked hard to make it nicer. Nothing that he has done has increased the noise pollution that I know of.

The real issue I believe that Don was making is that sound really travels at night.

When we put in a pool, we learned that you can't use it after 10:00 p.m. because of noise. I have suggested many times that bars that abut neighborhoods maybe should follow that same law and move inside after 10:00 or pull down the garage door type windows after 10:00 for the residents.

But it is nice in this beautiful weather to be out. I really think that Don was suggesting that instead of chasing people inside, we do something to help with the noise pollution.

I know that one of our Lakewood Architects worked with Stampers a bar on I think Lorain to add sound deading devices for them for their outdoor patio and they believed it was successful. Maybe it isn't - to be honest I'm not an expert at all on noise pollution. You seem to indicate that the sound isnt' deaded it is redirected. So maybe we are back to my idea of going inside after 10:00.

I seriously, honestly believe that the problem was there when we were there and hasn't gotten better or worse since we left. Residents were going to council and asking for assistance then. The problem does increase in the summer and it may have increased with the new law having smokers go outside.

JMHO

I was at the city council meeting when Tony George was asking for a variance to build a patio in back of Hairy Buffalo and an addition to the building that will cover the space between the Buffalo and the Farris building.

I was there because I live in an apartment down the street (right next to the Metro Park entrance and the noise is unbelievable. They were talking about shrubbery to provide noise abatement. I somehow fail to see how a couple of bushes are going to stop screaming, drunken 24 year colds from hurling obscenities at each other.

I will give Tony credit for talking to his son about turning down the music, which was one of the reasons for the variance being postponed. Our objections about the sound abatement were heard and they were told to come up with a better plan.

Personally, I don't see an entertainment district being a good idea for a part of town that probably has well over 900 residents (many of whom are voters).

You have no idea what quality of life issues come in to play. And no, I'm not going to move. I have a nice apartment and a pool and the metro parks right here.

A few more drunks on the sidewalk - just more of the same here.

Sharon,

I'm not sure that you are aware, but this plan was approved I believe 2 years ago when we still owned the building.

I believe that had to get it reapproved because they took so long in implementing it. But us owning the building would not have stopped it as it did not stop it previously.

All of the property at that time that they were building on was part of Harry Buffalo's lot. As I understand it, they are still using that land.

I did hear that residents did bring up noise considerations and the plan was temporarily withdrawn from a vote that night.

Lynn - I wasn't making accusations - just taking about noise and what some people really live with.