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Just imagine, it’s 1 a.m. and you’re soundly asleep when suddenly, you’re not because someone has fired up their motorcycle, one with straight pipes that don’t muffle the sound, and is roaring down your street.
Now imagine this is happening not once but sometimes three times a night and several nights a week – and no one seems to know how to stop it or has made any sincere effort to stop it.
That is life on Otis Street, according to residents who sought help from city councilors during the City Council’s first Ward meeting.
Led by Councilors Liz Mullane and Justin Tseng, the Ward 1 discussion hit on a number of issues, including development, traffic and the need for traffic calming in general, trash, pedestrian safety, e-bikes, easier and safer access to Wellington Station, Farragut Avenue being used as a cut-through, and noise, primarily from one motorcycle rider on Otis Street.
“This is the perfect time for you to be having this meeting because I feel like this summer the whole neighborhood of Otis Street has absolutely been terrorized, I mean terrorized,” said one Otis Street resident.
Residents were hesitant to give their names for a story because they feared retribution. However, the complaints were fairly universal and focused on one neighbor who would fire up his bike often at 1 a.m., 3 a.m., and 7 a.m., revving the engine before tearing off down the street.
When asked if they had confronted the man, more than one Otis Street resident said yes, but they said the man, who they called intimidating and scary, didn’t seem to care.
Residents said they have also called the police on numerous occasions and walked a letter into the chief’s office seeking help. Residents said they were told to call the police when it was happening, but they argued that it’s a man on a motorcycle and by the time police respond he’s long gone.
They were also told to contact the city’s code enforcer, which is under Health and Human Services. But when they did, they were immediately pointed back in the direction of the Police Department, said one resident, who also noted it was very difficult to even figure out who the code enforcer was.
“So, it’s a real quality-of-life issue at this point,” they said. “These are people who have lived here a long time, and it is horrendous. You’re afraid to go to bed at night because you wonder whether you're going to be woken up or not.”
The question is, in their minds, “Why can’t anybody knock on the door and say, ‘Let’s take a look at your motorcycle.’”
City and state ordinances
Medford has ordinances for unruly gatherings, leaf blowers, singing in the streets, playing music, and operation of machinery, but nothing specifically referring to loud vehicles or motorcycles.
According to the city’s codes, no person shall perform work that is excessively noisy or disturbing to the reasonable peace and quiet of the proximate neighborhood before 7 a.m. or after 6 p.m. on any day or operate a plant or machinery within the same parameters without having obtained a permit from the chief of police.
No one can sing or play any musical instrument in the street, except in connection with a funeral, military parade, or procession for a political, civic or charitable organization (that includes a police escort) without a proper permit from the city.
The state ordinance, adopted by the Div. of Air Quality Control in 1990 under the Department of Environmental Protection, goes by decibel levels.
According to the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR):
"A source of sound will be considered to be violating the department’s noise regulation (310 CMR 7.10) if the source:
“1. Increases the broadband sound level by more than 10 decibels above ambient, or
“2. Produces a “pure tone” condition – when any octave band center frequency sound pressure level exceeds the two adjacent center frequency sound pressure levels by 3 decibels or more.
“These criteria are measured both at the property line and at the nearest inhabited residence. ‘Ambient’ is defined as the background A-weighted sound level that is exceeded 90% of the time, measured during equipment operating hours. The ambient may also be established by other means with consent of the department.”
Some cities and towns, such as Boston, Somerville, and Waltham, have additional noise ordinances.
Tseng said Ward 1 is not the only neighborhood complaining about noise issues or the lack of help in addressing those issues, which is why he and Mullane recently introduced a plan to the City Council to rewrite the noise ordinance.
Mullane said she was surprised to see it hadn’t been updated since 1974, when the big issue seemed to be to make sure people didn’t sing in the streets.
Tseng said one obvious problem with the ordinance is that it seems to dictate that only the code enforcement officers have the power to do anything.
“And the truth is, we’re pretty understaffed when it comes to code enforcement, and they can’t take on all the requests,” he said. “They’re also doing building inspections, and they’re doing large-scale work as well.”
Tseng said the long-term solution would be to hire more code enforcement officers, “but we can also explore ways to expand authority in the ordinance that we’re rewriting.”
Mullane said they are also looking at how other communities are handling the issue.
Neighborhood response
While the residents of Otis Street felt heard, few were optimistic that anything would be done in the immediate to aid them and to solve their noise problem.
“I was pleased with the turnout of the residents from my neighborhood, but am not sure much will come out of it, other than misery loves company,” said one resident, post-meeting.
“I thought it was a good meeting, but I am not sure the two city councilors will be able to have any impact on the situation. Yes a new noise ordinance can be written, but without enforcement it is useless,” they said.
Residents were also mystified as to why police were not getting involved.
In the end
Mullane said she felt, in part, the main reason for having the ward conversations was to highlight the different issues plaguing residents, like the noise concerns.
“Our hope is to go back and try to figure out what we may be able to do around updating the noise ordinance … but also talking with the city, too, to find out what are some other opportunities that may be able to help to address it in the short term,” she said.
Tseng said they are working on instituting more traffic-calming protocols and are equally concerned about pedestrian safety. They urged residents to help them be proactive and alert them to intersections they thought were most dangerous.
“That’s why we wanted to do this, and that’s why it’s Resident Services and Public Engagement, because we want you to be engaged and help us, hopefully together,” Mullane said.
The council’s next ward meeting is Oct. 20 with Ward 5 residents at the Missatuk, and details will be announced.
