Thursday, July 31, 2014

Concert Noise - What to Do About It


From the TA website:

Stuyvesant Town Oval Concerts Agonize Many Tenants

The TA received angry complaints about the thunderous noise level from the concert in the Oval held Thursday, July 24. Most recently, as in the past, when the Tenants Association brought this issue to the attention of management, management countered that the concerts are a wanted amenity and enjoyed by many.

That is inconsistent with the complaints we received and which were posted online on several sites. Tenants have also complained about the decibel level of sound checks in the afternoon.

In their own Facebook post after the concert, in response to tenants with legitimate complaints, management dismissively said: "This is a once-a-year concert series we put on for our residents. The atmosphere yesterday was amazing, as everyone was smiling, laughing and enjoying their evening in their backyard."

The atmosphere in the hundreds of apartments facing the Oval, and even in many that don’t, was also amazing—but no one was laughing or smiling. It was unpleasant. Night workers who sleep during the day or evening couldn’t. Babies and small children couldn’t fall asleep. Our neighbors far from the Oval couldn’t hear their televisions, couldn’t eat dinner in peace.

The number of tenants seriously inconvenienced was far greater than those at the concert—which was not that well attended.

We need to convince management that the Oval is not The Great Lawn in Central Park. We need you to participate by registering a complaint by any of the following means:

● Call Resident Services at 212-420-5000. Use option #3 for Maintenance Requests.
● Provide feedback via management’s website: http://www.pcvstliving.com/contact choose, I am a resident, then choose the category, Recreation.
● Comment on management’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/PCVST .
● Tweet a comment: hashtag #PCVSTLiving and #Stuytown.

In case we cannot persuade management to stop sponsoring concerts, call 311 to register a complaint, and remember to note your reference number for follow-up. If many people call, an NYC Department of Environmental Protection inspector will be sent to investigate the noise level.

If scores of tenants complain effectively, management will not be able to wave us off as they did the people who complained publicly on management’s Facebook page.

Council Member Dan Garodnick advises us that he too heard from residents who were upset and that he shared their concerns. In response, he sent a letter to management, along with State Senator Brad Hoylman and Assemblyman Brian Kavanagh. The text of that letter appears below.

Via Electronic and U.S. Mail

July 25, 2014
Andrew MacArthur
Managing Director
CWCapital Asset Management
CW Financial Services LLC
810 Seventh Ave. 40th Floor
New York, NY 10019

Dear Mr. MacArthur:

We write to you to express our concern over the sound levels from this summer’s concerts in Stuyvesant Oval. Our offices received more complaints than usual, and wanted to make you aware that people complained from as far away as 272 First Avenue and 524 East 20th Street, despite their efforts to tune it out.

While none of us was physically present for the concerts, we felt that the complaints were significant enough for us to bring it to your attention. Further, it is also apparent that there is no way for a concerned resident to make a complaint by calling "resident services." On this, and on other issues, we would welcome a more user-friendly mechanism for residents to raise a concern with management.

We are of course aware that concerts for this year have just ended, and do not know yet whether you intend to bring them back. We ask that you or members of your staff sit with us and the Tenants Association in the coming year to discuss the timing and amplification of these performances so that we might mitigate these concerns.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Daniel R. Garodnick
Council Member
Brian Kavanagh
State Assembly Member
Brad Hoylman
State Senator
cc: John Marsh, President, Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association

27 comments:

Hippo said...

I was SO IRATE about the so-called "concert". Noise at its most "base" level. The utter disrespect that management shows towards the residents is appalling. The "sound checks"...or should I say noise checks began early afternoon and the cacophony continued well into the night. All residents want is peace and quiet in the privacy of their own apartments. This isn't Central Park, this isn't summer camp. Surely there must be something our politicians can do to ban these outrageous assaults on our senses. I am not sure calling 311 accomplishes anything. Next time the management pulls this sh*t, I suggest a tenant picket line with signs, calling local TV channels who would be more than happy to send a reporter to do a story on the local evening news ( think Channels 5, 9 and 11 ). The only thing that these vile clods understand is BAD publicity. They make me sick! "Sound check, sound check..."

Anonymous said...

These concerts do NOT belong in a residential community.

Whatever agency issues the permits for them needs to be told not to. That's who Garodnick, Hoylman and Kavannah should be contacting. As well as EVERYONE and ANYONE else under the sun who can help prevent them from taking place here again. They are nothing short of an assault on the tenants who are FORCED to listen to them inside their apartments. And don't give me that bull that they only take place a couple of times a year. They should be taking place ZERO times a year. I don't pay a TON of money for my apartment to be HARASSED like that in my own home. You wanna hear a concert? Go to an actual concert venue.

Unfortunately, I predict that the letter to CWCapital will have zero effect. They could care less. And if they could care less than that, they would.

Stuy Town Reporter said...

I think by now the only reason CW does any concerts is that it falls into their promotion of the property, a lure for those who may think such an amenity is hip. But CW knows what a pain in ass these are and that the vast majority of tenants do not attend them and a sizable portion loathe them.

Stuy Town Reporter said...

BTW, whatever happened to that bill that Garodnick was presenting to the City Council to strengthen noise regulations? This was months ago.

Anonymous said...

CW will continue to have concerts. They love harrassing everyone here. They do this in order to keep churning their rent rolls.

2015 will see more blatant disrespect for ST/PCV tenants.

As sure as the sun rises and sets. Wait and see.

Anonymous said...

As usual, too little, too late. Gone forever is the most valuable, peaceful quiet tree and wildlife filled unique asset of the property. They should have better protected the Oval from commercialization instead of supporting it. After the fiasco of their "letter" to CW on the photo for the management office I have doubts on the sincerity of their joint letter. Same as the midlease increases we got hit with, they turn a blind eye while it is created, then when it occurs and we complain and protest, they "protest" it with us. They caused this with management, this was their doing as much as CW and they need to stop this. Oval concerts are shameful, vulgar and offensive.

Anonymous said...

"BTW, whatever happened to that bill that Garodnick was presenting to the City Council to strengthen noise regulations? This was months ago."

Garodnick talks the talk, but he doesn't walk the walk. He's full of hot air.

Anonymous said...

Cancel Verizon!
Since this was not a ticket event, the money paid to the band is part of a bigger commercial money making deal like the Tishman Verizon concert series they started in PCVST in 2008 in exchange for killing the trees to install the fios in the Oval. The best way to complain about the noise is to cancel your Verizon accounts. Anyone with a verizon phone or internet or fios, cancel it and switch to any one of the other better services. The Verizon money deal destroyed our Oval and these concerts are brought to you by Verizon, so we all should just cancel our Verizon. That is the only way to make any sort of protest to the concerts that they will actually listen to. Cancel Verizon.

Edmund Dunn said...

"If you don't like noise in NYC, move to..........". I'm waiting for that classic transient line. Oh, never mind, it has already used in the T&V blog. In that tread, it was used by a Troll who does not even live here. Next classic transient line to be used re this issue: "Get over it!".

Last year, the two concerts were held on a Saturday, starting at 3 PM, ending around 6 PM. With those days and start/end times, one could at least plan an escape to get the hell out of Dodge (we went to the Frick for one, Governor’s Island for the second one.). Week day night? How clueless. TESTING, ONE, TWO, THREE, TESTING! Serenity Now!

http://town-village.com/2014/07/21/outdoor-concerts-taking-place-this-week/






Anonymous said...


Upon reading this, I rolled my eyes so hard they got stuck in the back of my head. PCVST residents could cancel and boycott Verizon in protest to the concerts.

Telling residents to make noise complaints and maybe DEC will happen by in the neighborhood next time is a hot in the dark that wont amount to a hill of beans. Anyone wanting to do something about this has to do better than these guys are "advising".

All the same players commercializing the Oval have a hand in the concerts.

Bottom line.
Boycott Verizon.

PCVST residents could cancel and boycott Verizon in protest to the concerts.

They have been flaunting this in our faces for years. Here are some Verizon concerts info and links since 2008

concerts are
"free and open to the public"

PLACE:
Stuyvesant Town Oval
Between 16th and 18th Streets and Avenues A & B (Enter at Avenue A and 14th St.)

CONTACT:
Call (212) 598-5296 or visit http://www.stuytown.com for more info.

COST:
Free and open to the public.

CW and Verizon have been advertising their Stuy Town concert series as open to the public for years as you can see in this CW written press release with all the info and links:

www.jambase.com/Articles/18246/Free-Music-in-NYC-Budos-Kaki-Easy-Star





http://forum.maplewoodonline.com/discussion/40122/easy-star-all-stars-is-hot-pick-for-music-in-nyc-this-week-they-have-maplewood-roots/p1




http://newscenter2.verizon.com/press-releases/verizon/2008/verizon-brings-its-super-fast.html

http://www.nyctaper.com/2009/05/stuyvesant-town-music-on-the-oval-summer-concert-series-announced/
http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2012/05/free_shows_at_s.html

Anonymous said...

My neighbors experience with Verizon installations, second and third party contractors, negligence, and giving out master keys.

http://statecasefiles.justia.com/documents/new-york/other-courts/2013-ny-slip-op-32546-u.pdf?ts=1382630002

Anonymous said...


1.
"We are of course aware that concerts for this year have just ended, and do not know yet whether you intend to bring them back."

Really?????

2. "We ask that you or members of your staff sit with us and the Tenants Association in the coming year to discuss the timing and amplification of these performances so that we might mitigate these concerns."

Did you just concede ownership for the next year (s)? If so, an audit of membership numbers is in order so we may have real tenant representation at all future matters and negotiations as the past did not include real tenant representation. We can't have these same players at the table given the disastrous results of the past 5 years.

Anonymous said...

Lets sic the TA on them...LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

Anonymous said...

another slick attempt to make it look like they are doing something when they have not.
this will only contain the problem. hippo is right - we need bigger action and publicity.

Anonymous said...

The concerts are insult on top of injury. Verizon rewiring PCVST did more damage to PCVST than Hurricane Sandy did.

Verizon Fios in PCVST will make huge profits and took huge payoffs to implement and is part of their scandalous unfair business practices in 2012.

Governor Christie allowed it with some highly suspicious maneuvering.

"This is not about helping customers. This is all about one thing -- more money to Verizon - read charging customers more money or forcing them onto more expensive services.

At the September 2012 J.P. Morgan analyst conference, McAdam said moving the customers to wireless makes the company more profits:"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-kushnick/the-contime-merger-do-we-_b_4839339.html

New York Attorney General Schneiderman did the right thing for Fire Island and the Catskills by stopping Verizon.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/eliseackerman/2013/07/03/new-york-attorney-general-slams-verizon-for-degrading-service-to-customers-requests-fines-of-100000-per-day/

Seems our pols are more like Governor Christie.

Anonymous said...

Did you just concede ownership for the next year (s)? If so, an audit of membership numbers is in order so we may have real tenant representation at all future matters and negotiations as the past did not include real tenant representation. We can't have these same players at the table given the disastrous results of the past 5 years.

Amen Brother or Sister. The TA board needs to step down!

Anonymous said...

2:17 They assume they will be in office. Is there no one running against these guys? Anyone else would be better. Anyone!

Anonymous said...

Oh puhlease
They know how many years the contract calls for with Verizon and how many more concerts are booked and planned. Why bother saying we don't know if you are planning more concerts unless you are trying to cover up the fact that you do know!

Anonymous said...

2:15 the exception is probably Brian Kavanagh who seems like a genuine person who really does care about the residents and his constituents. He gets my vote.

Anonymous said...

Its like repeatedly banging your head into the wall. The TA doesn't get it.

We know all of these tips you list! We already did that! But complaining to the noisemaker aka management won't solve the noise problem.

The TA has got to do better than this weak solution or I agree they need to step down. If this is the best this TA can do they will never be taken seriously. The alternative to this being the best the TA can do is if the TA is offering this weak solution to quell the tenants. Let's hope its the former and not the latter.

Anonymous said...

2:15 so Dan could have asked the NY AG to include PCVST when he stopped Verizon in Fire Island and the Catskills and we could have saved the Oval and the trees and not had any of these concerts! Unbelievable!

Anonymous said...

You have to love VAMOS too these days. It's like spring break every night there now. Loud loud and if you live on that side, really sucks too. helloooooooooo , anyone.

Anonymous said...

Handsome Dan isn't going to do dick.

Anonymous said...

I agree in that the TA needs to step down. Totally and completely ineffective - not doing shit - in fact, making our problems WORSE. STEP DOWN current TA. Show us your balls.

Anonymous said...

Good point.
The pols should address those who gave the permit and those who sponsored the concerts if they were truly trying to help residents.
The things they list for us to do didn't work, and their answer to that is to have more of us do what didn't work so maybe if more people do what doesn't work it will then work?! LOL

Anonymous said...

This kind of BS is only going to get worse. Wake up! The only way to get your peace and quiet is to move.
Unfortunately this is what I've come to realize after over 30 years of living here, acquiring an ulcer from lack of sleep due to an upstairs neighbor who consistently woke me up between 1 and 4Am for years, constant dogs barking, erratic heat all winter for years and on and on. I've turned into an angry, stressed out person I don't recognize.
But I do recognize that nothing is going to change around here and although I have a beautiful apartment with a great view and a low rent I must leave. Bittersweet but no other way.

Anonymous said...

Excellent idea re: TV stations We should probably do it in advance of these "activities"