interesting story in New York....

cameragirl21 wrote: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070621/ap_on_..._backyard_noise
I was kind of surprised to see something like this would go as far as it did...my next door neighbors have a pool, heck, everyone in South Florida has a pool and they have a bunch of kids there every weekend...have no idea whose kids they all are and they make A LOT of noise but it never really bothered me too much and I usually just tune it out. What bothers me more is that the ADULTS play loud music outside at night when they have their get togethers and it's often several nights a week. It's just piano music, nothing too obnoxious but still, they play it loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear and again, while i think it's inconsiderate, it certainly doesn't bother me enough to complain. Their kids on the other hand, i can hear squealing and splashing in the pool even when i'm in my house.
in principle, i don't like noise but i have no problem with children having fun, it's the same thing i did when i was a kid and i'd rather kids be out playing that sitting in front of the tv or playing video games or worse. so this particular noise never bothered me and i'm surprised their neighbors are all up in arms about it. when my parents visit though, my dad, who is not especially fond of kids always asks me how i can live here and tolerate all that noise, so i guess for some people it is worse than for others.
i will say though, that when there was a big story about some Michigan town, presumably close to Detroit complaining about the islamic mezzuin, or call to prayer being played out loud...now THAT would have driven me nuts and i would have complained the loudest...children playing i can deal with but loud, rhythmic chanting in some foreign language i would not have liked at all.
what about you, would living next to these people bother you? would it bother you enough to complain?
some neighbors who do have kids say it's the parents' fault for not keeping their kids quiet but how do you keep kids quiet when they're outside playing or splashing in a pool?
what i never understood was the need to blast loud music outside, like when people go to the beach with their radios and turn them up so the entire beach can hear...idk why people can't just enjoy the peacefulness of the ocean without loud music to accompany them....

luvbug00 replied: well here we are not allowed to have pools in our yards for that reason. there is also a church here that has thease beautiful bells they are not allowed to ring because of neighborhood complaints. For me i haven't had everyday waking up or going to bed with pool noise but my when my gparents had a house in ny they had one and so did every neighbor and nothing is more irritating then trying to relax and hearing non stop squeeling before 10 am and after 5pm. inbetween i say squeel away!

mom21kid2dogs replied: I thought our neighbors filed the complaint when I saw this:lol: They are rather intolerable older folks who grew old rather than grew old gracefully. We happen to live in the neighborhood gathering house~it's nothing to see 4 or 5 little girls over here running through the sprinkler in the summer. They just go in their house, sulking and slamming the door behind them. We are never rude or inconsiderate. No one ever is in our yard before noon or after 9pm. We grew tired of their complaints last year and provided them with a copy of the city's noise and nuisance ordinances as well as a business card from a local relator who could assist them at looking at local adult exclusive communities. It was the last we've heard about it (aside from the occasional door slam )

gr33n3y3z replied: thats why you should check everything before you move into a so called nice neighborhood bc it can turn out to be the area from h#ll.

kit_kats_mom replied: That's pretty crazy. Of course, I called the cops on a church one time for violating the noise code. I lived downtown, two blocks from a large church that had a pool on thier roof. It was usually ok but a few times, during the summer, it got ridiculous. even with my windows closed and the A/C on, I could still hear the shrieks and yells. I only called the one time though. I was sick and couldn't sleep with all the racket. I felt like I had some pretty bad juju afterwards.

Kaitlin'smom replied: oh the things people will complain about. what a waste of time and tax payers money.

luvmykids replied:
Those people must not have kids Of course as neighbors you want to be considerate but kids will be kids. What miserable people who have nothing better to do.

PrairieMom replied: I agree that children should be able to have fun and make noise, but at the same time, other people in the neighborhood should be able to enjoy their years as well.
really, it sounds like this problem would go away if people would just be sensitive to other people's needs, and be a little considerate.
Who knows? maybe the people that filed the complaint worked nights and were unable to sleep during the day due to the children screaming? maybe they asked the parents over and over to try to keep their children's noise down to a tolerable level. I guess I would need to know more about the story.

moped replied: I didn't read the whole article, but we have been the ones people complain about many times - This was before we were married and our neightbors were super close. We enjoy our yard and follow the 10pm by law that is in effect. We are still outside after 10 just not with music etc..........

Police have shown up at our old house many times - LOL

cameragirl21 replied: actually, some of these neighbors DO have kids and they DID ask the parents to keep the kids quiet.
idk though, is the noise that bothersome? not to me but for these neighbors apparently it is. interestingly, after winning the case, the parents said they would try to keep the kids quiet and the neighbors, in an interview said that they hope these parents got the message of how awful it was for the neighbors that they had to go this far.
seems some of the neighbors are willing to hire a lawyer and take it even further if it doesn't stop and these parents have thought about leaving the neighborhood.
idk, i agree with Tara that everyone needs to be tolerant and respectful of others but i also feel that if the neighbors' kids having fun loudly outside is your biggest problem then you're really fortunate.

stella6979 replied:
That town in Michigan you're referring too is Dearborn. Thankfully, I don't live there.

Calimama replied:
No kidding.

Anthony275 replied: i saw this on the news wednesday night, crazy stuff, you cant blame the youngest kid for all that, she doesn't know better!

grapfruit replied: I watched the video on this. And where I agree I would totally rather kids be outside playing, and that kids making noise is what they do, I wonder if some of it is excessive in this case? The tape that the neighbors recorded of them playing was pretty loud, I really wondered how 2 kids could make that much noise. I guess I can see both sides, but agree w/Jennifer. If kids making noise is your worst worry then count your blessings.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
These were my thoughts. I've been on both sides of the fence, so it's hard to say without knowing HOW loud the children were being. Plus, in our neighborhood the land lines are really close, so quiet noises can sometimes sound really loud. Let's face it, some parents just don't care and will let their children do whatever they want. Our neighbors neighbor (got that?) always lets their children wander into our yard to play on OUR swing set (this is 2 houses down). Now, mind you, I for one, do not even know these people, their names, children, etc. No clue who they even are. Second, they don't even ask! Some people are just rude. I would never allow my children just to wander into someone elses yard to play on equiptment that isn't theirs, esp. if I did not know them! I haven't caught them yet this year, but I noticed they FINALLY got their own swing set.

PrairieMom replied:
our neighbor lifts his kid OVER OUT FENCE to play in our yard.

Boo&BugsMom replied:
Now that is RUDE!!! I would be flipping out on him. I am neighborly, don't get me wrong. But there is a certain code of ethics and manners that need to take place, if you ask me.

holley79 replied: Some people just have to have something to gripe about. I love summer time when all the kids are out in the back yards playing in the pools and having a great time. it didn't bother me before I became a mom and it defiantly doesn't bother me now. Glad they ruled in favor of the kids.

PrairieMom replied:
yup. They basically think that if Benjamin is out there, then our yard is open for business. It is so annoying to look out there, and suddenly there are 2 kids instead of one. I have talked to them about it, but they say that when Benjamin calles to their son over the fence, (which he does ) then their son wants to come over, and its hard for them to resist.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! who are the parents here?

grapfruit replied:
Oh man!

My best friend had this same problem. She has 3 little ones (4.5, 3, 18 months) and when Allie (18 months) was really little the neighbor's 6 yr old (who's name she doesn't know) kept coming over asking if they could play. She told her "no" because she was overwhelmed w/the new baby and 2 little kids, plus dealing w/a little post pard. She told the little girl "no" nicely mind you. She came back twice (while the kids were napping). Finally she got firm and said "no" if they want to play we'll come get you, please stop asking. The girl's grand parents came over CUSSING at her b/c she wouldn't let her come over. She's like "I don't even know you, why would you send your kid over here to my house?!?"