When I moved to my house in Downtown Sioux Falls (DTSF) over 20 years ago, I learned quickly that it was NOT a quiet neighborhood. I am a block away from Cliff Avenue, I have 3 major train tracks within blocks of my house, the Avera heli-pad and over my house is the decent path of most airliners to Joe Foss field.
I knew this going in to my purchase because I wanted to live in DTSF. Before that I lived for 7 years right off the loop by U-Haul. I was used to the noise.
So I am astonished when people buy million dollar+ condos in DTSF and complain about the noise;
Nighttime downtown is a party place. It can be crazy when the weather cooperates. There are lots of noisy, happy people wandering the streets. The sip-n-cycle goes by with loud singing people. Revelers are drinking, shouting and partying. But it’s not all harmless fun.
Some vehicle drivers feel compelled to join the festivities by making as much noise as they can. It can be painfully loud. Outdoor diners are forced to take frequent breaks in their conversations. The excessive noise goes on well past midnight. Residents who live nearby have little chance of a good night’s sleep.
One downtown resident noted that while the traffic laws downtown are the same as elsewhere in town, enforcement is much less effective. Another observed, “it’s like a frat party, with no adult supervision”. No other neighborhood in Sioux Falls has this sort of regular nighttime challenge. The police seem frustrated with the situation, and perhaps resigned to acceptance of it.
Several people have reported that this problem appears to be unique to Sioux Falls. It is not such a serious issue in other Midwest downtown areas.
Don’t get me wrong, Joe makes tons of great points about how to improve DTSF and I would agree the fart mufflers, illegal motorcycle pipes, hip-hop-club on wheels and sip-and-cycle yahoos need to get a life, but human’s are fallible (stupid) and stupid is as stupid does.
Joe is right, enforcement is the key, but it will also take a heavy lift from the city council actually implementing noise ordinances in DTSF and the mayor instructing the SFPD to enforce the laws.
This is NOT a Midwest or Sioux Falls problem. I have been on 6th street in Austin, TX and the gay pride festival in San Fran. These areas tend to be DENSE so that makes them noisy and whether you live in my DTSF 1888 prairie shack or a lush DTSF multi-million dollar condo one thing remains the same, it’s noisy.
I love it when rich part time residents can’t have their cake and eat it too! Want some whine with that cheese Joe?
Like I’ve said many times, the loopers might have left, or had been forced out, but they were then replaced by drunk yuppies.
Oh, and the sip-n-cycles in town are quite embarrassing. Whoever invented them should be sent to a gulag along with the guy who invented the walking taco.
I saw a sip-n-cycle on the bike trail, but it was a class one electrical one (I think.), so it was okay. 🙁
if joe wants quite, move to trail ridge with the rest of the wealthy elderly.
“And get off my law … er, ah … condo association common area.” Joe Kirby.
It can’t change but can get worse. Police can issue unenforceable tickets we’ve all learned to ignore. Entertainment district and residential don’t mix. There must be a buffer zone rail yard or slum. If you bought downtown residential, it will some day become a slum lord rental or crack house. Peace is away from a downtown area and preferably in a neighboring city.
Authoritarian city government promotes North Korea life style. Developers know better but there’s wasted and inappropriate public money use allowing for inflated construction cost and exorbitant guaranteed profit. It’s dead end methods that eventually becomes another Detroit or South Chicago.
Don’t buy beachfront property and then complain about the sand in your shoes.
Lemming, LOL, I think he has beachfront property in San Diego? (his winter residence) BUT don’t quote me on that, just what I heard.
There were many fine points in his post, BUT the noise rant made me laugh. I don’t like the noise either, but I deal with it because I like my location. Ironically I have heard the same rants dozens of times from friends who live and work on the main drag DTSF. It’s almost like they have a support group that meets to get their griping talking points inline.
Entertainment district and residential don’t mix igf one isn’t into entertainment. Some of the best years of my life were spent living in DT Vermillion in a large residence above a store-front, surrounded by bars, restaurants and the police and fire departments. Just watching (and sometimes participating in) the “action” negated the need for the presence of any sort of television devices. The interesting cast of characters that trooped through that place………..
Steve Kirby works for Kristi Noem, a governor whose right wing constituents have been radicalized by tiny men like Neal Tapio on facebook screeding that downtown Sioux Falls is full of bad people, and that it is their political pleasure to drive convoys of trucks through it at night to harrass anyone down there with noise and coal rolling. That Joe Kirby is now complaining about this is ridiculous. Go talk to your family if you want it to stop. Believe me, it will stop if you just talk to your family about it.
I, too, once lived in DT Vermillion above Leo’s…. AND, if you didn’t have enough money to partake at least you could be entertained by watching. But then I guess if you have all of the money in the world, then you just want more, right?…. Oh, and let me guess also, the ICON is still too loud for some, huh?