PORT TOWNSEND — A downtown youth club that has drawn complaints from neighbors about its loud music and excessive noise is taking steps to fix the situation,
“We are trying to be good neighbors,” said Boiler Room board chairman Marty Gay, who was supervising the efforts Tuesday.
The Port Townsend City Council in July allocated $20,000 to support the operations of the Boiler Room during the next fiscal year.
At that meeting, several neighbors complained about Boiler Room noise, and the council approved the funds under the condition that the club present a progress report in October showing that it has taken steps to mitigate the problem.
On Tuesday, two freelance sound experts, Reek Havok and Mark Naficy, arrived from Seattle to take a series of sound level readings and recommend how the club could decrease some of the excess noise.
The two will write their recommendations in a report that will be presented to the Boiler Room board of directors Sept. 20, Gay said.
Among their preliminary observations: Installing double-pane glass in the club’s windows and hanging soundproofing material on its inner walls would cut noise.
“It’s a brick building, so there is some unavoidable vibrations,” Naficy said.
“But there are steps you can take to make it less of a problem.”
Performers can be required to follow rules that can help control the sound, Gay said.
Naficy and Havok offered their services free of charge.
“We’re doing this for the kids,” Naficy said, “but we wouldn’t do this [for free] if it was a bar.”
The ability to make improvements is contingent upon the Boiler Room’s ability to pay for them, Gay said.
The tests were taken from across the street and inside the adjacent apartment of a neighbor who, according to Gay, was happy that the club was making the effort.
Recorded music was used for the tests. The group cranked up the public address system and played loud hip-hop sounds of the kind that can be most aggravating for people who are trying to sleep.
During the City Council meeting where the Boiler Room was discussed, several neighbors said that the club’s patrons and management were inconsiderate of those who recently moved into the neighborhood.
With this effort to curb the noise, club management hopes to prove this assertion untrue.
The Boiler Room was opened in 1993 to be a safe place for youngsters who have nowhere else to go.
Although it has been credited with helping youngsters stay off drugs, it is intended for all young people, not just those considered to be “at risk,” said Boiler Room board member Cory Ench.
It has been in its current location — a 1,078 square-foot building at 711 Water St., which it owns — for five years.
The club also is continuing its monthly cleanup, with the next work party scheduled at 3 p.m. Monday.
At that time, the club is calling for volunteers to pick up garbage and recyclables on its block — Water Street between Adams Street and Quincy Street — and move outward as far as time allows.
After the cleanup, the public is invited into the club for a 6 p.m. potluck dinner.
For more information, phone 360-379-8247.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.