Wilmette: U2 Noise & Traffic

The picture above is from 9/14/2019. It shows the shuttles from the NU Band Day parked on a Wilmette residential street.

Picture by David Carlsen

2016 April 12 Facebook conversation between Wilmette residents about noise from NU’s softball and baseball games and the baseball clubhouse HVAC unit.

2016 April 12 Facebook conversation between Wilmette residents about noise from NU’s softball and baseball games and the baseball clubhouse HVAC unit.

Mike Miller‎ to Ryan Field Neighbors April 12, 2016

I live about 3 blocks from the field, just moved here late summer. The music for the hour before and during the recent weekend softball games has been incredibly loud and joined here because I'm wondering if this is normal. We went walking nearby yesterday, ran into someone walking a dog who lives nearby and she said this was new this year, the level of sound.

I emailed alderwoman Revelle and an NU contact, who forwarded me to Maureen Palchak, the NU Assistant Athletic Director for Community Relations. She said she was working on these issues and with Revelle and is seeing if anything changed from last year and what they could do.

Are there any neighbors who know if the softball game music is different this year? I'm just shocked at how loud it is. I can hear lyrics clearly with windows shut and I live quite a distance from that field.

David Carlsen: I have lived here through many softball seasons and the music this year is definitely louder than in the past. The speaker system is aimed to the north, so the problem is more acute if you live in Wilmette. That said, it is simply a volume issue and that can be controlled easily. The students handling the audio systems have no idea, or concern, unfortunately for neighborhood impact. I have not had any personal experience with Palchak, and she has not been involved in any of the neighborhood issues or meetings on the baseball stadium or parking lot to my knowledge. My suggested, and preferred, contact is Scott Arey, (s-arey@northwestern.edu) Director of all NU athletic facilities. I have used him in the past for noise issues related to Wildcat Alley and other facility problems and he has been very responsive. It is simply not a big deal to turn down the volume to a reasonable level......we simply need to make our feelings known.

Robert Sieland: I've lived behind the baseball stadium for almost 10 years now. In years past the noise has been charming - a crack of the bat, baseball announcer, and from a little music aimed to fill NU's previously modest seating. That definitely changed last weekend. Was as bad as or worse than a football game (which invites tailgaters with disco speakers blaring feat from our yard). I couldn't tell if this was just an opening day thing. I can live with a big opening day. I am concerned the sound could be a big issue if it becomes the norm for baseball games, which of course are much more frequently than football games.

Mike Miller

...As an aside, the HVAC unit on the roof of the new building just north of the new Rocky Miller park is incredibly loud when it's on. Is it just me?‎

Unresolved issue of the noise from the Welsh Ryan Arena chillers

The continuous loud noise emanating from the Welsh Ryan Arena chillers has been plaguing Wilmette residents since 2018. Below see the correspondence among the neighbors and between them and Dave Davis of Northwestern University. The issue of this noise is still unresolved.

Mike Miller‎ to Ryan Field Neighbors

June 19, 2018

Is anyone else in the area hearing the loud whining sound coming from the north side of Welsh Ryan the past few days? It's been going on 24/7 and driving me crazy. Or is it just me?

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August 3, 2019 10:08 AM

Subject: Re: Email to neighbors about Welsh Ryan HVAC noise

Dave Davis and Maureen Palchak,

I'm sending this email on behalf of the neighbors north and west of the Welsh Ryan Arena in Evanston and Wilmette. No one has gotten back to us yet about the noise emanating from the high pressure chillers on the new construction. After the acoustic panels were installed the sound has changed to be one (I think) all the time instead of cycling lower at 8 pm and back up at 7 am, which was at least helpful for sleeping. And the sound is still present in the neighborhood, which is something we're trying to eliminate.

I and others have reached out to NU a few times with no information back except Maureen Palchack who was able to tell me that they had been installed, were going to be louder when the weather was hotter and that NU was looking into things. This was ~ 2 weeks ago. Can we have an update on what NU is doing to eliminate the sound from the neighborhood?

Thanks,

Mike Miller

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On 8/8/19 12:25 PM, Dave Davis wrote:

Dear Mike,

My sincere apologies for the delayed response. I confirmed the chiller controls are programmed to nighttime setbacks from 7:00 pm to 7:00 am. Additionally, the chiller loads are capped to balance efficient operation and reduce sound transmission levels. These changes should reduce nighttime noise.

We also met with city staff at the chiller site to inspect the new acoustic panels, and we sent them a copy of our noise report following the meeting. The report showed an overall reduction in noise, most notably in the mid-range common noise nuisance bands.

We understand this has been an ongoing source of frustration for you and your neighbors, and we truly appreciate your patience in working with us to resolve this matter.

Best,

Dave D. Davis

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Aug 12, 2019 at 11:15 AM

Subject: Re: Email to neighbors about Welsh Ryan HVAC noise

Dave,

Thanks for the reply. The consensus with the neighbors I've talked to is that whining sound coming from the Welsh Ryan chillers into the neighborhood has not changed much if at all since the new acoustic panels were installed. There was a period immediately after their install when they were much, much louder and on all day, but after that week of communication and the adjustments made we all experience the same sound we did last year at this time. We all appreciate the chillers going back to being cycled lower from 7 pm - 7 am, but anyone within 3 or so blocks east, southeast and south of the units are still hearing that siren sound 12 hours a day as we did in 2018.

The obvious solution is to not have the sound-producing elements exposed to the neighborhood, instead being blocked with an acoustically appropriate barrier so that the sound is directed up, and to have that physical barrier be such that the sound does not bounce off the wall and back out again as Laurel mentioned earlier. As we've said before, this is like hearing a car horn or air raid siren off in the distance, but hearing it constantly during the day.

Please understand that these are our homes where we and our families live. We appreciate the steps taken so far and continue to complain because the persistence of the dissonant sound is stressful to listen to all the time. We would still like this sound out of our neighborhood and ask that NU and Evanston continue to figure out ways to do this.

Thank you.

Mike

Band day : A casepoint in bad NU traffic management

Emails from Wilmette resident David Carlsen to Dave Davis of NU and our group, regarding the impact of the Northwestern Band Day on Saturday, September 14, 2019

NU Band Day logistics

To dave.davis@northwestern.edu

Saturday, September 14, 2019, 06:26 PM CDT

Band Day is always an exciting event....especially for all the kids. I understand today was the largest one ever

Unfortunately it also produced some real logistical problems

The early morning seemed to go well. The buses dropped off the participants who then entered Rocky Miller Park and the buses disappeared. Many returned soon forming an unbroken line parking illegally along the south side of Isabella all the way east. Many more started to return just before halftime......and since there were no more illegal spots on Isabella....immediately turned north into Wilmette and started parking illegally on 4th st and probably others also

As the kids started streaming out after halftime, more buses started to arrive on Isabella and started loading in the middle of the street. Isabella became totally impassable from Ashland/5th st. all the way to the EL tracks for at least 15 or 20 minutes. I experienced it because I couldn't even get out of my driveway. Some neighbors were distressed and several called the Wilmette police. Since I was out I talked to the responding Wilmette officer. He said he couldn't even get to 4th st along Isabella to answer the call and had to detour north to Gregory or Maple. Think of the difficulties in getting any emergency vehicles into or out of the area.....even from the staging area behind Welsh Ryan.The officer was absolutely amazed that there was no police presence(either NU or Evanston) at Ashland/Isabella and at the foot of the Welsh Ryan driveway where all the kids were streaming out and trying to cross the street.

The officer suggested that in the future buses could be staged along Popular st.which is empty or even along Greenleaf which is an extra wide street......but there must also be plenty of places in Evanston......certainly on Campus. With today's communications, it wouldn't be hard to call them quickly in sensible order.

Granted Band Day only occurs once a year......but today's events don't inspire much confidence for the much more highly attended BIG games.....especially OSU at night

NU simply has to be more sensitive to our neighborhood and plan accordingly

.....David Carlsen

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Mon, Sep 16, 2019 at 9:18 PM

Dear Welsh-Ryan Arena Neighbors,

I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts and concerns about this past weekend's High School Band Day and the unsafe traffic conditions following the event. As you know, we had 26 high school bands perform during half time. This event was a great complement to our regular game and a wonderful experience for the high school students, their families, and the staff that joined them.

The necessity to have all the bands arrive at the same time to rehearse pregame is a huge logistical challenge. We worked with University Police, the Evanston Police Department, our emergency management team, and our transportation and parking staff to develop a strategy for the buses. Although the pregame parking went well, it is my understanding the marching bands did not follow our departure plan as instructed, which caused the traffic jam. Please know that we intend to work closely with the bands and the local police departments in the future to ensure this does not happen again.

In addition, we have invited Wilmette officials to attend our operations team meeting so they can learn more about our planning and preparations for each home game. This meeting also provides them with an opportunity to share any concerns.

I apologize for any inconvenience this caused, and we will take the necessary corrective steps to prevent this from happening again in the future.

All the best,

Dave D. Davis

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Mon, Sep 16, 2019 at 11:06 PM To: Dave Davis <dave.davis@northwestern.edu>

Thanks for your note

The arrival process for Band Day actually worked pretty smoothly....no traffic jams.....helped immensely by the fact that the bus arrivals actually spread over at least an hour and there were 2 NU persons meeting each bus and hustling the band members in to Rocky Miller so the buses could depart.

I certainly can't dispute there actually was a departure plan.....how thoroughly it was communicated may be another issue...., but there was absolutely no supervision available or present to execute....No Evanston police, no NU police, no NU security, no Music Dept. people. You had 30+ buses...most of which were certainly unfamiliar with the area......all tying to pick up and load at the same time(start of the 3rd quart.)

That is simply ridiculous....for an institution like NU that holds events like this all the time and has a Band Day every year.

Even the Wilmette police officer responding to a call from one of the neighbors got caught up in the gridlock and told me he couldn't believe there was no police supervision.

Band day is unique and going forward there will not be the same type or number of buses at up coming games. However, as the BIG season starts this week, attendance at each game will rise significantly and there will be new and different logistical challenges. These past events certainly do not inspire much trust or confidence in how the situation will be handled.....especially for the sold out, Fri. night game with Ohio State coming up.

......David Carlsen

David Carlsen to our group Tuesday, September 17, 2019, 09:35 AM

.....NU's handling of an event(Band Day) that they have been holding for 17 years.......certainly causes one pause as to how they might handle any new event challenges. Can't remember if I sent you any pictures the neighbors took of the 30+ minute bus gridlock on Isabella.....absolutely no supervision of any authorities

.....Dave

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David Carlsen to our group Tuesday, September 17, 2019, 10:42 AM CDT

re: NU /Ryan Field Sat. Sept 14 2019

Just after half time on Sat. Isabella was impassable for 30+ mins.

..... Dave

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Dear Dave Davis,

Attached are 2 photos of Saturday's 40 minute NU traffic jam looking down 4th street to Isabella. Traffic was one way east on Isabella because the buses were using 2 lanes and buses were also parked illegally on 4th street from 4:15 pm until 4:45 pm. "No parking" is clearly marked.

The University is very lucky there were no emergencies in the area because police support would have been unable to get through. There was no evidence of any university or Evanston employees directing traffic.

Sincerely, David Carlsen

Wilmette residents are also opposed to NU text amendment proposal. See Mike Miller's correspondence in:

2019 E-mails, Letters and Media