Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Dirt Bikes topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents report dirt‑bike nuisance near Long Point Road; committee points to state enforcement options
Summary
The Open Space Committee received a resident complaint about off‑road motorcycles near Long Point Road (a Chapter 61A parcel and a priority production area). The committee advised residents to speak to landowners and local police and provided Massachusetts Environmental Police and MassWildlife as enforcement contacts.
The Town of Lakeville Open Space Committee reviewed a letter from residents reporting that dirt bikes and off‑road vehicles were operating near Long Point Road, disturbing neighbors and potentially harming habitat.
The committee said the letter — postmarked Jan. 31 and received by the committee mailbox — described loud machines, trespass onto adjacent property and concern for wildlife (complainants cited owls). The parcel in question is listed on the committee’s records as Chapter 61A and as a Priority Protection Area, and the complainants asked whether the town can require the owner to post “no dirt-bike” signs.
Committee members advised the complainants to: first, speak directly with the landowner if possible; second, contact the Lakeville Police Department; and third, if the activity continues, contact the Massachusetts Environmental Police, which enforces Commonwealth law on off‑road vehicles. The committee read sections of the state guidance to the meeting: operating a recreation vehicle on land of another without written permission, operating within 50 feet of a residence without permission, causing excessive noise, and causing damage to private property can be violations under state law. The committee also suggested MassWildlife as a resource where wildlife-impact concerns (for example nest disturbance) are alleged.
Why it matters: the committee said town boards have limited direct enforcement authority on private property for off‑road vehicles and that the Commonwealth’s Environmental Police are the primary enforcement and education agency for these matters. The committee offered to forward contact information to the complainants and to advise them on next steps.
