Task Force On Noise Pollution Gets To Work In Upper Manhattan

UPPER MANHATTAN, NY — A group of community residents and stakeholders in Upper Manhattan recently launched the WaHi-Inwood Task Force On Noise to address excessive noise in the neighborhoods before summer 2021.

The idea for the 21-person task force was inspired after hundreds of community members raised concerns about noise at the Manhattan Community Board 12's public hearing on citywide noise pollution on Aug. 4.

The Inwood and Washington Heights community board had the most noise-related complaints of any area in Manhattan during 2020 between Jan. 1 and Aug. 3, according to data from the Manhattan Borough President's office.

The complaints included 17,800 street noise complaints, 3,700 illegal fireworks complaints, 9,100 residential noise complaints, and 4,400 vehicle complaints.

The goal of the task force moving forward is to create a list of recommended solutions that address noise issues in Inwood and Washington Heights, while also holding city agencies and other groups responsible for being part of the solution.

"Though noise pollution is not a new issue in our community, it has absolutely been magnified now that most people are working, learning from, and spending their free time at home," said Adrian Rosas, a task force member who lives in Inwood, in a news release.

The formation of a task force was first suggested at the August public hearing about noise pollution by Community Board 12 member Tanya Bonner. Bonner also played an instrumental role in organizing the initial public meeting around the issue, and she now serves as the chair of the task force.

"After seeing so many people attend that public hearing and hearing their desire to organize around the issue, I knew the community was turning an important corner," said Bonner, in a news release. "It was no longer just about filing 311 noise complaints that go nowhere, but about people willing to step up in more active ways to fight for the health and thriving of the community they love."

Since November, the task force has held monthly meetings and plans to release a report by April with a list of recommendations to help improve noise pollution in Upper Manhattan.