In Chelsea, An ‘Ungodly’ Noise

A little over a month ago, Michelle Rosenblatt began hearing a particularly irritating, high-pitched ringing, permeating what should have been the peace and (relative) quiet of her apartment. Then, it wouldn’t quit.

“It’d be like listening to a mosquito, times 20,000 decibels, nonstop in your ear,” she said. “I can’t even begin to tell you how ungodly it is.” In her 17-plus years as a resident on West 26th Street, near Sixth Avenue, she’s never before put up with noise so constantly aggravating. “An ambulance comes and goes,” she said, to provide contrast with the new mystery sound, which according to her account continued “24/7, three weeks, nonstop.”

Rosenblatt and a smattering of neighborhood locals have made it their mission to get to the bottom of the noise that some suspect has been emanating from atop the Beatrice Apartments complex, which also houses the Kimpton Hotel Eventi, at the intersection of West 29th Street and Sixth Avenue. On Tuesday, Jan. 10, the noise let up — but after other brief respites, there are fears it could return (and it did, only a few days later that weekend). Despite repeated 311 complaints from multiple residents, there remain more questions than answers.

Homing In, With Limited Help

Since the noise started, Rosenblatt has taken it upon herself to contact neighbors, building representatives, elected officials and relevant city agencies. In a conversation with someone working at the Kimpton Hotel Eventi, she recalled feeling brushed aside, when she was informed that the hotel was aware of the noise and had received complaints, but that the Beatrice Apartments side of the building was supposedly responsible. When she phoned Beatrice Apartments in December, “they acted like they were really trying to help” and a leasing agent said the noise prevented the building’s super from sleeping, according to Rosenblatt.

As a result of her complaints to 311, the city’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) reached out to schedule a visit to measure the sound — from inside her apartment. “You can’t just take a reading on the street?” Rosenblatt said. Before anyone from the DEP showed up, the sound dissipated.

The agency’s response thus far hasn’t placated residents. Instead, working with the DEP has caused a collective sense of “frustration and disappointment and disillusionment,” according to Andrea Ackerman, an artist who’s lived in the same building as Rosenblatt on West 26th Street since 1998. Beginning in late December, she launched multiple 311 complaints of her own, going so far as to send an audio recording documenting the noise.

As of Thursday, Jan. 12, the DEP had received 13 complaints since November, according to a spokesperson who noted that not all 311 grievances are forwarded to the agency. “There have been no violations issued as the source remains unknown and inspections to date have not been able to confirm the noise,” he said in a written statement. On Friday, Jan. 13, he noted two upcoming inspections on Jan. 19 and Jan. 31. In a video recently shared on Reddit, taken near Beatrice Apartments, the noise is easily perceptible.

Serge Harnett, a director on the 29th Street Neighborhood Association’s board, told Chelsea News that he’s heard a handful of complaints from people living in the Beatrice and in the co-op that spans 114, 116 and 120 West 29th Street. He said he couldn’t comment further, citing a board policy that restricts media engagement. Council Member Erik Bottcher has also been involved, according to Rosenblatt, though his office did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.

Suspicions And Fears

Rosenblatt is convinced the noise isn’t coming from any nearby construction sites, but from some feature of the building that houses both Beatrice Apartments and the Kimpton Hotel Eventi. She and Ackerman have looked into a similar case in Brooklyn’s Cobble Hill neighborhood, where the architecture of a new building caused a similar sound as wind interacted with its facade.

Regardless of the source or cause in Chelsea, the near-constant ringing has had an impact on neighborhood residents’ quality of life. Despite spending a “fortune” to upgrade her apartment windows a year ago, Rosenblatt said, “that noise just comes right through my air conditioner.” At night, she’s slept with Bose headphones.

Ackerman worries that if she were to try to sell her apartment (which she doesn’t currently have any plans to do), the noise would make it difficult to attract a buyer. She raised health concerns relating to hearing damage, too. It feels like “tinnitus, except you hear it on the outside,” Ackerman said. “It becomes just totally intolerable.”

Even when there’s an intermission, Rosenblatt said the sound lingers in her head. “From my mouth to God’s ears, I hope it stays off.”