Council removes 10 p.m.–6 a.m. time window from 'unruly gatherings' ordinance, keeps numerical threshold

The Town Council voted on April 14 to amend the town’s unruly‑gatherings ordinance by removing the existing time restriction that limited enforcement to 10 p.m. through 6 a.m. The amendment passed on a 4–0 voice vote with one councilor abstaining.

The change followed extensive public comment from neighbors troubled by daytime and weekend gatherings that have spilled into streets, invited hundreds of attendees and required multiple police responses. Neighbors of one Wakefield address showed photographs and described repeated incidents in which hundreds of people and multiple ride-share vehicles crowded a private street and obstructed passage. Several residents told the council they want a municipal tool that allows police to act when a gathering unreasonably disturbs residential peace regardless of clock time.

Police Chief Moynihan described how officers respond: complaints come in by call or dispatch, officers investigate and try to de-escalate; underage drinking or other criminal violations provide clear grounds for enforcement. He cautioned, however, that a numeric threshold can be difficult to apply consistently across neighborhoods with different lot sizes and densities. Council discussion reflected that tension: some council members favored removing the numeric threshold entirely; others urged retaining a low threshold (the current ordinance uses five persons) and watching how the amended time window functions in practice.

The council ultimately approved a narrower change: it removed the day/night limitation but left the numeric threshold unchanged. The first offense remains a notice; repeat offenses carry progressively larger fines and potential municipal-court action.