Can we agree on anything anymore? I often like to walk through Tower Grove Park, close to my house in St. Louis. On many evenings I like sit on a park bench and read and write. I’ve found it increasingly annoying that so many loud vehicles/motorcycles cruise through the park (some loud enough that you can hear their engines growling 1/2 mile away). Every night or two, somebody parks their vehicle, near a beautiful pond and garden area, opens their windows and blasts their music loud enough that you can hear it thumping 1/4 mile away. I see these two things as problems, so I called the park office and asked what we can do about this. I was told we can’t do anything about the loud car engines, but I was given the park ranger’s phone number in case someone “is playing their music very loud” or “blaring” their music.
I shared my concern on the Nextdoor.com website for my neighborhood and ten neighbors promptly “liked” the post. But I also received a long comment (liked by six people) who reminded me that it is a “public park,” calling me “passive aggressive,” suggesting that I am over-wrought and needing meditation and suggesting that I avoid the park during popular times. Ergo, we have two factions re loud park noise: Pro and Con.
Regarding loud human-generated noises in the park, we, along with many
other creatures, need some place to go to find peace and tranquility and to commune with the natural world. We are not designed or well-equipped to accommodate the constant barrage of percussive noise that cars and radios blast into our streets. Let’s treat ourselves, every now and then, to the sounds of silence.
Lisa – Thanks for your comment, but you and I are almost in a minority of those who have voiced their opinions to this concern on both the Next-door website and my FB page. I’m stunned. https://www.facebook.com/evieth
Lisa, here’s a follow-up: I spoke with a park ranger today. He said there is a noise ordinance and they enforce it as follows: You can play electronic music, but it should not be so loud that others can hear it more than 50 feet away. That sounds like a very reasonable rule. My concern is with car stereos that are so loud that they can be heard hundreds of yards away.