These longtime New Yorkers aren’t letting their issues over late evening partying fall on dying ears.
Roughly 20 Brooklyn and Queens residents gathered at a city corridor Wednesday to air out grievances about noise and crowding stemming from loud music performances on the Beneath the Ok Bridge Park — a brand new out of doors venue beneath the Kosciuszko Bridge.
“They’ve occasions that go on right here till 2 or 3 o’clock within the morning, they’re extraordinarily loud – with home windows closed, TV on, you hear it over that,” mentioned Greenpoint resident Wealthy, 46, a highschool instructor who lives on Apollo Road a block away from the venue.
“Once I emailed them to say why are they permitting this? They answered, ‘properly, they filed the right permits.’”
Wealthy’s spouse’s household has been residing in Greenpoint for over 100 years, he mentioned – however they’re contemplating shifting due to their new neighbors.
“The home I grew up in, the home that we’ve, my nice nice grandmother purchased in 1911,” his spouse Trish, 46, advised The Publish concerning the dwelling the place the couple lives with their 2-year-old son and Trish’s mother Gin, 77.
“My grandmother was born in what’s our kitchen now,” she added, “and we’re fascinated by shifting as a result of this has gotten so uncomfortable.”
The once-abandoned lot between the boroughs, now operated as a park by the non-profit North Brooklyn Parks Alliance and funded partly by town, opened in 2021 and has since held 8,000-person occasions like June’s LadyLand out of doors music competition – which drew the likes of Madonna.
Different marquee occasions embrace the Summer season of Love competition collection, spearheaded by Bushwick nightclub Home of Sure.
Over 64,000 attendees got here to Beneath the Ok Bridge Park occasions in 2023 alone, park officers mentioned – with even “bigger occasions occurring within the fall.”
The massive ticket occasions – whereas “essential” for income to the park, officers mentioned – have drawn the ire of neighbors, a few of whom report booming live performance noise heard from inside residences, some so far as Lengthy Island Metropolis and Maspeth.
“It’s not solely the music itself … it’s the tons of, or 1000’s of individuals,” mentioned Matt, 47, who lives on the identical avenue as Wealthy and teaches on the identical highschool.
“There is no such thing as a public transportation out right here at evening, so all of them name Ubers and Lyfts … and all you hear is honk honk honk all evening.”
Lucy, who’s initially from Poland however has lived in Greenpoint for over 30 years, advised The Publish she will be able to hear the occasions from her dwelling blocks away on Nassau Avenue.
“My query is, why it’s allowed till 4 a.m. if different locations should shut down by 10 p.m.?” she advised the gang on the city corridor.
Katie Denny Horowitz, who’s the chief director of the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance, advised The Publish the vast majority of occasions at Beneath the Ok finish by 10 p.m., and by no means as late as 4 a.m.
“If a neighbor is listening to music at 4 a.m., it’s completely not emanating from an occasion at Beneath the Ok Bridge Park,” she maintained.
A evaluate of previous occasions on the park posted to Resident Advisor confirmed exhibits ending as late as 3 a.m.
“I don’t perceive how an occasion outside might be allowed to go till 2 o’clock within the morning, particularly when it’s so near residential,” Wealthy added on the city corridor.
“There are loads of kids on this neighborhood and it’s very irritating.”
Throughout elected officers’ remarks on the city corridor, Council Member Lincoln Restler (D-Brooklyn) mentioned the non-profit is seeking to “handle these points” and “discover options round sound testing and crowd management.”
Horowitz mentioned the group tries to “mitigate the sound as a lot as doable,” together with by altering the path of the audio system.
North Brooklyn Park Alliance officers mentioned Wednesday that they arrange a hotline for neighbors to name when the music will get too loud.
Throughout occasions, the group additionally screens sound ranges in about 20 places inside a half mile radius.
The Berry Road Alliance, representing elements of Williamsburg and Greenpoint, has dubbed Beneath the Ok a “website of large noise air pollution” — and the group that runs it “an leisure nonprofit branding as environmental,” in keeping with an X submit.
“NBKParks creates large automobile site visitors and hold [sic] neighbors up until 4 a.m. with their concert events which generate cash for them,” the Berry Road Alliance wrote.
North Brooklyn Parks Alliance’s largest funder is the Metropolis Parks Basis, allocating $96,900 to the group in 2022, in keeping with nonprofit watchdog device CauseIQ.
Not all residents have taken up problem with the park, which additionally encompasses a bike path, inexperienced area and skate park in the course of the day.
Kevin, 33, advised The Publish at Wednesday’s city corridor that more often than not, Beneath the Ok is occupied by “people having fun with skateboarding, people having fun with a stroll by the water.”
To him, the income from the concert events going towards park enhancements makes all of the distinction.
“The query right here is, there are concert events everywhere in the metropolis in venues the place the cash goes to non-public pockets,” he mentioned.
“I imply, that cash simply goes to traders. It goes abroad … The massive distinction right here is that you just received some huge concert events occurring however the cash goes again into the neighborhood.”
