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HomeMy WebLinkAboutVI-10 - MBAC Center NoiseAgenda Item No. 10 COMMUNITY SERVICES DE_ PARTMENT • DATE: August 25, 1997 TO: Parks, Beaches and Recreation Commission FROM: Steve Hunt, Senior Recreation Manager SUBJECT: Marian Bergeson Aquatic Center Noise Mr. Don Slaughter contacted a City Council Member and staff concerning the noise during the Junior Olympic Water Polo Tournament at the Marian Bergeson Aquatic Center, which occurred Sunday through Friday, August 3 -8, 1997. The tournament started each day at 8:00 AM and ended by 7:30 PM. Mr. Slaughter's concern was the constant noise of the whistle from the water polo games. He suggested alternatives to using whistles for refereeing the games. He also suggested that the addition of the sound wall is causing him to hear the whistles more now than when the pool was originally built. Recommendation • 1. Maintain the current policies and regulations for the joint use of the Marian Bergeson Aquatic Center and monitor strict adherance to these policies by teams and organizations using the pool; and/or 2. Request funding in the next budget year for a capital project to conduct a sound engineering study and to recommend other mitigating actions that could be taken at the pool. Background The Marian Bergeson Aquatic Center is operated and maintained under a Joint Powers Agreement between the Newport -Mesa Unified School District and the City of Newport Beach. The original agreement was signed in July 1989 and the pool opened in May 1990. The construction of the pool was partially funded by the City of Newport Beach with the understanding that it was to be a polo pool to be utilized for training and polo meets. Complaints were received from residents in the surrounding areas about the noise at the pool. To help deflect the noise of whistles and PA systems, a sound wall was built in 1991. On several occasions the Parks, Beaches and Recreation Commission has reviewed • the noise regulations for the use of the pool, including October 1991 and October 1994. The current regulations related to noise read: l No whistles are to be used prior to 8:00 AM. No live music during any event. • No amplifier, loudspeaker, or PA systems are to be used for cheerleading at any time. Amplifier, whistles, loudspeakers, or PA systems for announcements, anthems, etc., may be used from 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM, Monday through Sunday. .I L • Alternate Methods Mr. Slaughter suggested alternatives to the use of whistles. Staff discussed these alternatives with John Vargas, Corona del Mar High School Water Polo Coach and U.S. Men's Open Coach: r, �I (1) Use of Hand Signals - Hand signals are used by referees for water polo games with deaf players. They are not used in other cases. (2) Underwater Whistle - The coach was unaware of an underwater whistle, but did suggest that this method would be difficult since players' heads are out of the water most of the time. •Date: Tue, 5 Aug 1997 12:07:33 -0400 (EDT) From: ShamrockDD @aol.com To: jhedges @newport Subject: Whistles at CDM 8/5/97 Mr. Hedges: You may recall that I appeared before the city council a couple of years ago and asked if there was something that could be done about the water polo whistles at CDM High School. The matter was referred to a subcommittee and that was the last I heard of it despite the fact that I wrote to the chairman twice. For the past couple of years I have tried the mind over matter approach. It is not Working. Two Saturdays ago the whistles started at 8:00 am and continued until just about 8:30 pm. On Sunday they started at 8:OOpm and continued until about 6:00 pm. We are now into our third day of a tournament during which the whistles start at 8:00 am and continue without stop until 6:00 pm. It is not the volume of the sound that is the problem. Lots of things are louder than the whistles - some of the planes from John Wayne, for example. The problem is that we hear the whistles over and over and over again all day long for days at a time. We have owned our house for 13 years and have had no other problems with the school. We never heard the whistles from the old pool. We didn't hear the •whistles from the new pool until a sound barrier was installed to deflect the sound from some neighbors up the street. Now the sound is directled over to US. We don't want to cause the school or the waterpolo players any problems. We just want them to be good neighbors. Surely there is some solution to this problem. Couldn't an underwater whistle be installed at the pool or something like that? I recently saw an article in the Register about the World Championship for deaf waterpolo players which I thought was interesting. I assume they must play without the whistles. If we can put the Sojourner on Mars, can't we figure out a way to referee a game without bothering all the neighbors? Many swimming meets are held at the pool. The crowds at those meets are much larger than the waterpolo crowds, they use loudspeakers, and yet we never have any problems with the sound from those meets. It is just the hour after hour of the waterpolo whistles that wears on one's nerves. The same weekend the last waterpolo match was held, an 18 team basketball tournament was also held at CDM and we didn't hear a sound. I was told a couple of years ago by Mrs. Bergeson that I should be happy that the local kids were playing such a great sport and I should support them. When I walked over to the pool last week, there were only about 50 people in the stands including the tems. The two teams that were playing were Stanford and USA East, with others such as Harvard, Malibu, and San Diego in the wings. We got a call yesterday from the daughter of a friend of mine who is playing in the current tournament and she goes to Mitty'High in the Bay area. I don't have any problem with putting up with the whistles so that the local kids can practice or play their games. However, I don't think it is fair to •ask our neighborhood to listen to the whistles for 12 hours straight for days on end so that teams from all over the country can play. Page 2 •This is a nice neighborhood and we need some help. If your neighbor's son stood in his backyard and blew a whistle every ten seconds or so for 12 hours straight, I am sure that you would feel the way I do. If the person blowing the whistle was a visitor from Malibu or Cambridge, it just makes it worse. Thanks for any help you can offer. Don Slaughter 644 -1455 (H) 721 -9091 ext 1 (W) 2200 Aralia Newport Beach is • Page 3