Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Recreation Noise Fields topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Neighbors raise pickleball noise, field upkeep concerns; mayor says sound mitigation options are being explored
Summary
Residents urged the council to address loud noise from newly opened pickleball courts and to review Recreation and Public Works maintenance of athletic fields. The mayor said the administration is exploring sound barriers and will follow up; no formal action was taken at the meeting.
Several Methuen residents used the public participation period Monday to press the city for solutions to noise from a recently opened pickleball court complex and to ask for a review of Recreation Department spending and field upkeep.
Steven Tarquinio, who said he lives on Sycamore Road near the city’s new courts, told the council he repeatedly asked the Recreation Department about a noise-mitigation plan during the project’s planning and that no plan had been developed. “I asked the Rec Department what was being done for noise mitigation given how close they are to the Sycamore Road neighborhood,” Tarquinio said, adding that the department responded that bids had not yet gone out when he initially asked and later admitted there was no mitigation plan.
Tarquinio asked the council to take four steps: hire an independent expert to propose a mitigation solution; review other Recreation Department projects for mismanagement or waste; temporarily lock the pickleball courts until an effective mitigation plan is in place; and audit Recreation and Public Works field maintenance and spending.
Several other commenters raised related concerns about field conditions and the role of volunteers in keeping athletic facilities playable. Resident Jack Burke and others urged transparency and enumerated missing documentation related to the Searles Estate process in separate remarks.
Mayor Neil Beauregard responded in the meeting’s mayoral report, saying he has been in touch with the superintendent of parks and the city’s point person for ADA and capital work and that the administration is exploring options to install sound barriers around the courts. “I’m in touch with Superintendent Angelo about that. We’re exploring some avenues to install some soundproofing, barriers, so to speak, there to address that issue,” the mayor said.
No formal vote or directive was taken on the floor; councilors asked for follow-up information at a future meeting and flagged the issue for the administration to report back.
