Living in midtown Tucson can have its challenges and one of those is Noise.
I think most of us can be very tolerant and understanding that at times noise is simply a part of living in a city but sometimes we find have stepped beyond "normal" noise and into something that is genuinely disturbing. If this happens regularly or during the night, this can easily affect our quality of life. On this page you'll find recommendations and regulations that might help your situation. |
It's a Party
There are parties and then there are PARTIES. I think most of us can be very tolerant of a neighbor having an occasional party. It may be a bit loud, playing music you don't care for and/or run a bit late but that's just part of living in any city and not just midtown Tucson. Then there's THE party -- the one where there might be hundreds of people and there's no doubt it's out of control. Being a university town, this is not uncommon and the Jefferson Park neighborhood, being situated near the university, has a lot of experience in this area. They were kind enough to share their Flow Chart for the issuing of a Red Tag by police. They also recommended that as many neighbors as possible call police when a party grows out of control. It moves the call up on the priority list if more than one person calls. The responding police officers are the ones to determine whether or not a "Red Tag" is issued. Please click the button for read the full criteria for issuing a "Red Tag" as well as the procedure the police follow. The Drum and the Bass Line
Car stereos can put out such high levels of sound and even if you like what is being played, you often don't want it waking up your baby, rattling your windows or disturbing your peace and quiet. Is there much you can do? Probably not if it's simply in and out of your space in a short span as it drives by. If this occurs because of the same person and regularly, maybe. You can always reach out to TPD and see what advice they give you. There is an excessive noise ordinance you can read thru here: |
Arf! Arf! Arf!
Let's rejoice that we have a neighbor with a dog that will bark at a passerby! That alerts us that somebody is out on the street or nearby and should they be a baddie, it may cause them to move on away from our home and property. That's all well and good until we have a neighbor with a dog who is incessantly barking either during the day or at night. This is not "alert" barking anymore :-(. This is not something simple to rectify but hopefully a chat with the dog owner will do the trick. Keep in mind, if it's bothering you, it's likely bothering other neighbors too and you can ask them to also approach the owner. Sometimes the dog owner doesn't even know this is happening. Sometimes it's just not possible or prudent to approach the neighbor. You can register a noise complaint with Pima Animal Care by phoning them at 243-5900. Please click on the "Animal Noise Process" button below to read the entire procedure: Noisy Neighbors
So your neighbor likes to play their music way too loud a lot. It's not necessarily late into the night but goes on for hours during the day and disturbs you. Maybe they argue loudly a lot or let their kids yell and scream for hours on end while playing outside. Maybe they're forever working on cars or motorcycles and revving the engines while testing them. Besides moving, what can you do? I'll put a link to the Excessive Noise Ordinance here too and maybe something can be done by contacting TPD for advice. |
Vroom! Vroom!
Things get more complicated here. TPD is simply not going to come hang out by your house because you've got a neighbor with a loud muffler. For the most part, these guys just come and go and the level of their muffler can annoy us and often rightfully so but not much can be done. If they seem to be intentionally revving their engines or coming or going at high speeds to create more noise than necessary and especially if this was being done during normal sleeping hours, it would probably be an idea to contact TPD. They'd probably want some proof of the noise and a record of just how often this was going on. Would neighbors also be willing to attest to the problem? There are laws on the books and you may have some recourse. Please click the button to read the State Statute: Construction Noise
Construction companies are going to know and abide by the ordinances so you're not likely to have problems there but should you have a neighbor that is remodeling themselves, they may not know that they can't just do this at any hour that suits them. Once again, this is in the Excessive Noise Ordinance but I will include that section here as it does crop up fairly often: "Any noise created by construction activities including, but not limited to, repair, remodeling,demolition, drilling, wood cutting or excavation work conducted from 8:00 p.m. through sunrise Mondays through Saturdays, and at any time on Sundays and legal holidays; except that a person may engage in the above listed activities at that person's own residence from sunrise through 8:00 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and between 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. on Sundays or legal holidays" |
In conclusion . . . .
Have you ever heard anyone say that they're looking to live a noisy neighborhood?? Neither have we. People always seek out QUIET neighborhoods yet some people move into those neighborhoods and seemingly do everything in their power to disrupt them. Sometimes this is just youth or obliviousness to their surroundings and that there are babies sleeping, children napping, shift workers crashed, people that are home sick, elderly folks, and very sadly, sometimes people who are dying. Other times, it's genuinely inconsiderate people who can make living near them even less tolerable and take joy in doing so. With that in mind be sure to tread lightly and think things thru before you do or say anything. Do keep in mind that if it's bothering you, it's likely bothering other neighbors too. Is it possible to reach out to them and get their thoughts on the situation. |