My husband and I moved from Halifax to a quiet sub-division in Beaver Bank. We were hoping that giving up the noise-polluted atmosphere of apartment and condo living, not to mention the traffic at all hours of the day and night, would finally allow us the opportunity to spend our “middle years” a lot more peacefully.
Apparently, this is not to be! There was a dog issue the first year but now we have ATV and Motorbike/Dirt Bike issues that are worse. What are the bylaws concerning the incessant driving of an ATV and motorbike (dirt bike) in the person’s own yard next to ours, in daytime and straight into the evening? I’m not talking once in a while… this is every day on and off. They are on their own property and just adjacent to where we live. At certain times, they have driven on the public road or on the playground across from their yard. I am not going to sit in a ditch all day, all summer, with my camera waiting to take a picture of them doing this, either.
During the nice weather, we would love to enjoy our coffee, read quietly, or have supper out on the deck; we’d love to have our windows open to catch some fresh air and warm breezes but we can’t because of the noise and smell of exhaust; we’d love to watch TV in the evenings but no matter what we can hear them loudly enough that it is unenjoyable.
We could be like these neighbours, maybe we could hook up our stereo in such a way that it would “blast” them into oblivion but then we’d also be disturbing the neighbours that are quiet. We could probably do all sorts of things to make their life hell but what would be the point in our behaviour emulating theirs? So is what they are doing to disrupt the peace and quiet fair? I think not.
Why are there NO laws concerning this? Why are these types of “toys” allowed to be driven in residential areas and not in a designated area made just for them and away from residents who want only a quiet atmosphere? Where are the people to make this happen and why are they not doing anything? —B
This article appears in Jun 16-22, 2011.
Fuck you, OP.
I think there’s a basic misconception that rural living equals peacefulness, when in fact there are just different noises than urban ones. Sometimes the noises are louder and more obnoxious. Perhaps a retirement community that has strict regulations on what is allowable would be better suited to you. Or purchasing enough acreage so that your nearest neighbours are so far vaway that you can’t even see them much less hear them.
Proof reading would have determined that vaway is not a word and eliminated that pesky misplaced ‘v’. Apologies.
^^ Exactly! People chose to live 20-30 clicks from the southend so they can have those toys and have easy access to the trail system. And the province pretty much legislated that toys must be used on private property, where do you expect them to play?
This is really your problem OP. You state in the first line that you moved to a quiet subdivision. Later on it is noisy everyday. Did you not do your homework and case the place you might live in? That’s what I’m doing now, I want a quieter place and have made a few trips to the areas I’m interested in just to sit outside for a while and listen.
So your commute to the shoe store will be a little longer then, Al?
Not much you can do as long as they are on their land, have permission to be on that land or on a trail. Unless they are breaking the noise by-law, there is nada you can do. This is why it is important not just to inspect the home you are buying but investigate the area and ask questions. A little time invested in that goes a long way for peace and quiet.
As for the OB: Never assume.
You do have rights OP! Happened to me. You call the RCMP and complain and complain some more. In my case the RCMP made them sign a form stating the times they were permitted to drive and not permitted. If there are children under 16 years of age it is illegal! If they are not wearing a helmet it is iilegal. Call the RCMP, they will do something.
Watch this movie OP
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0425308/
You sounds like a stuck up cow. Let the poor kid play, geeze of all the distructive things he could be doing but you choose to complain about that. Maybe you should move back to that condo.
Excuse me hardduke, but there ARE laws regarding ATV’s and noise by laws.
Try reading:
http://www.halifax.ca/legislation/bylaws/h…
Section #3 – 1. No person shall engage in any activity that unreasonably disturbs or tends to disturb the peace and transquillity of a neighbourhood.
There I said it now shut up and think before you go firing off your mouth!
NSGurl, if the ATV is further than 100 feet away, too bad too sad. And a hundred feet is not really that far.
Knowing the section of the law is fine but just as or more important are the appendices and case laws that go with it.
Gotta say I’m kind of surprised no-one has mentioned perhaps going over and talking with them?!?!?
if they’re assholes, then yeah, cause a stink…
or hopefully if they’re civil, work something out.
(*shocked that it was I requesting people be civil…..)
If they’re going to be douchey about it though, you have to be prepared to bring out the big guns…. hop in the truck and rev that fucker til they stop.
crank Celine Dion until their ears bleed and they’re begging for the sweet release of death.
Never fear, even the most capable of humans can only take about 6 minutes of her ululating.
NSGurl – Excuse you, it is people that complain about these stupid things that end up having their house egged at halloween. Let the kids have fun atleast he is outside entertaining himself, and not selling drugs, and stealing things.
What if it were a man using a chain saw to cut his wood….would you call your cops and complain about him too
I don’t know why everybody’s assuming the person(s) driving the ATV/dirtbike is a kid…
I was riding ATVs at ten (OOOOH it’s illegal!) pfft. I shot my first rifle at nine… so what? OP could act like a grown-up and have a calm talk with the neighbors to try to work out a compromise. Or they could be a cowardly immature douchbag and “call the RCMP and complain and complain some more”. It’s a kid for Christ’s sake do you really need to bring in law enforcement?
I’m always suspicious of an OP when their tone of writing is overly proper and polite, it’s as if they know they’re spewing bullshit so they try to pretty it up.
But it’s this that really makes me think OP is stretching for something to condemn these neighbors with:
“we’d love to have our windows open to catch some fresh air and warm breezes but we can’t because of the noise and smell of exhaust”
Smell of exhaust? Sorry, but I’ve never been able to smell the exhaust from any of these vehicles over about five meters away, I find it really hard to believe that it’s wafting through your windows next door and is at that distance still potent enough to not only be smelled but to be bothersome.
I think not.
I don’t like it when people exaggerate shit to make their side more agreeable… you had some points OP but they are lost after that.
you’re my kinda gal snoopster
Lol have you ever been to Beaver Bank Orgasmatron? That’s what kids do there. Adults don’t buy ATVs to ride around in their front yard.
The talk to your neighbor route would be a good first step. If you really want to make a big deal of it AND the neighbors are douchebags about it, then set up remote cameras and live your life.
While I can sort of feel for you with this bitch… why didn’t you check out the place you were buying first ?
IF you had spent any time around there, you’d have heard the bike.
At least (or at least not yet) you’re not complaining that the farmers in your area smell of manure . I’m not complaining, because I completely understand what they’re doing & why they’re doing it…but when the farmers field just a couple hundred feet up from my property gets fertilized with liquid pig shit….you go outside & your eyes water…but he till’s it in & in a day or two, the problems gone.
Now if the bitcher who freaked out about a fart on the bus ever decides to move out here. Dear bitcher, you best buy a hasmat mask.
haha…smells better than dog shit. i did a thorough examination of our neighbourhood before we purchased
I don’t get why people are jumping all over the OP. They’re being criticised for not checking out the area for noise before they moved in but OP says a barking dog was the problem the first year. So the ATVs and dirt bikes must have arrived after that.
I think OP is being perfectly reasonable. Why should anybody be subjected to loud noises (for recreation)while they’e home and have their quality of life ruined?
What if the neighbour enjoyed opera music instead of ATVs and blared it evenings and on the weekends? I bet dollars to donuts people on this site would be with the OP and think the neighbour should shut it down.
If OP can’t resolve this problem by talking to the neighbour or by police intervention,all I can suggest is to buy a nice set of speakers, put them out on the deck, aim it next door, put on some Puccini and crank it.
so, big deal, a few loud noises fucked up your 5 minutes out of the day. i have a wheeler, and the muffler, you know that thing that deadens sound to an acceptable leval, works fine. all you hear at half throttle is putt putt, and a very tiny amount of smoke.
only those machines that are not maintained, make excess noise, excess smoke, and damage. my bikes are all well looked after. i have an 86 honda 250 fourtrack, and a 96 polaris 400 all wheeler drive. so anyone saying that all bikes are noisy, should maybe try one instead of just whining and being stupid on here. out again at end of month.
OP, your mistake was buying a place in Beaverbank. The whole area is polluted with backwards rednecks who think they live in “the city” but have the Goler mountain mentality. Sackville is the same….it’s like a time warp back into the 1980s with shitty cars and puffy hair. Put your house on the market and start looking further outside the city.
Admittedly, I have never been to Beaverbank. I may have passed through it a time or two, though.
Each and every time my redneck inbred neighbours did something that effected me and/or my family I called the RCMP/the county. And guess what??? THEY MOVED!!! And then the neighbourhood had a party! Good riddens. Come to find out, they split up after they moved…. so sad. Not!
ohh gurll, no
“Good riddens” lol
NS Gurl you sound like a mean spirited obnoxious bully. But worse, a bully that can’t fight their own battles. I at least hope that you tried to come to a compromise yourself without bothering the police first. You know, like adults do.
I feel sorry for anyone who ever does anything that “effects” you. Error aside, that’s pretty loose criteria for a call to the police…
I think I’ve been to Beaver Bank once… that’s where Radar is right?
Snoop, we talked over and over and they would do it even more. I am not a bully by any means but they were to us. I was just a Mama Lion protecting her cubs and den. If you are a parent you will know what a maternal instinct feels like.
Oh, and let’s not forget, they were known to the police…. Nuf said.
See when you explain it properly you sound less like a crazy bitch lol.
OP,
If you can’t reason with the Dukes of Hazard next door, you probably should lodge a complaint with the RCMP, especially if it looks like they’re regularly breaking the law.
The other thing you could try is throwing a couple of cases of beer over the fence. This might mellow them out and quiet them down.
Why should people feel as though they should “settle their own battles like adults” and go knocking on the doors of (or even engaging in a dialogue with) strangers that they may perceive as threatening? I am a teeny 25 year old woman who looks 16. It would be completely idiotic for me to systematically throw myself into such situations, regardless of how harmless it may actually be. It seems that you forgot that not everyone is so hardcore they feel comfortable having such confrontations with strangers – in particular, an inconsiderate rowdy bunch of men. Yeah, I’ll be calling the cops, that’s what they’re for. This isn’t the movies.