Residents unhappy with Harley-Davidson dealership noise

Submitted by bizgrrl on Wed, 09/05/2007 - 16:15.

This is a sad state of affairs and, so far, no one is listening. Except for, of course, the residents of the mobile home park being subjected to the loud noises of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle owners.

What I find fascinating is McSpadden, the owner of the mobile home park (trailer park as written in the paper), is trying to get assistance from the City of Maryville and Blount County to alleviate the problem. Kudos to Mr. McSpadden.

According to The Maryville Daily Times,

...a loud public address system and music, smells and the “toxic” smoke from the recent burnout the Harley dealership sponsored.
...McSpadden said. “I had one lady come out during the event and she thought her house was on fire. The whole house smelled liked burning rubber ... her clothing and everything.”
...Some residents are elderly, some already have respiration a problems and some have young children. They don’t need this. The more people that are there, the higher the noise. It’s getting worse every weekend.”
... noise is not only on weekends but through the week. He told council sometimes he has to get up to go to work at 4:30 a.m. after being kept awake by motorcycles being revved up until 1 and 2 a.m.

McSpadden said “sometimes people can’t even hear their TVs in their houses.”

How did this happen? How is it the City/County governments did not consider the surrounding area when approving the dealership in the first place, then allowing loud, obnoxious parties nearly every weekend? Why can't/don't those governing Blount County/Maryville think before they act? Haven't they heard of zoning? Haven't they heard of noise ordinances? Apparently they've heard about them, they are just not sure what to do about them.

( categories: )
Noisy Mocycles
Submitted by FarmerJohn on Wed, 09/05/2007 - 16:30.

Now come on Bizgirl, the city has bent over backwards to accomodate this business. Beer permits, turning a deaf ear to noise nuisance, parking along 321 (a federal highway no less), providing police support, etc. Why should they care about county residents? They never have in the past!

The whole burnout thing irks me. The noise, the smell, the loud mufflers. Actually unmuffled motorcycles irk the crap out of me. The only sound I can hear while hiking, outside of the noises that should be there, are damn unmuffled motorcycles.

But I will say I have been to a couple of shows at the Shed and have enjoyed them.....

Got a soft spot for the Shed
Submitted by local_yokel on Wed, 09/05/2007 - 21:39.

HD has been known to give over the keys of their facility to good causes for fundraising purposes. Hate to think it annoys the neighbors, but I've always thought this facility was a good addition to the community. Maybe another location would have been better, but you gotta love these businesses (including the Palace Theater) who give of their profit margin to support local efforts to preserve Blount County.

No, I don't have to love any
Submitted by bizgrrl on Thu, 09/06/2007 - 04:17.

No, I don't have to love any business that does not care for their neighbor. There is no excuse for their abuse of this neighborhood. Supporting one local effort while abusing others does not give one a free pass.

Harley Rider
Submitted by Joe328 on Fri, 09/07/2007 - 22:25.

I don't have a problem with a once a year burnout during the day. It's no different than fireworks, except it only lasted for a few seconds. As far as the every Saturday night Shed noise, I agree something should be done. The September issue of Harley Owners Group magazine, has an article and several letters to the editor in strong support of OEM mufflers on Harleys.

I enjoy my Harley, but I also enjoy peace and quiet at some locations like my home.

There may be a way to improve things...
Submitted by Wendy Pitts Reeves on Sun, 09/09/2007 - 20:13.

Hey, folks-

Just wanted you to know that this issue came up in a casual conversation I had recently with Howard Kerr. He actually had some good ideas on how The Shed might be able to dampen the noise levels and was planning to talk with them about those ideas. Though I don't know for sure, there may be a way to make this work for everyone. I'll let you know if I hear anything else.

~Wendy

Wendy Pitts Reeves, L.C.S.W.
Blount County Commissioner, District 4, Seat C

Thanks, Wendy. Does Howard
Submitted by bizgrrl on Mon, 09/10/2007 - 05:23.

Thanks, Wendy. Does Howard Kerr think his ideas will be satisfactory for the residents in the mobile home park? I.e., is it enough? I hope Howard Kerr is successful. I also hope, though, there is discussion with the residents to ensure he (or someone) won't have to go back to the dealership and try to negotiate further.

Howard Kerr
Submitted by local_yokel on Mon, 09/10/2007 - 10:24.

Howard Kerr lives right there, too, and so would have a vested interest in brokering a compromise. House is really close to the H-D place. I know, because he keeps bees and sells really great honey!

By the way, Howard Kerr undoes all the negative stereotypes you can think of for Republicans. He's a stand-up guy. If Joe G. couldn't be Mayor, Howard would have been an awesome choice.

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