Neighbors annoyed by noisy Farm

Jennifer Kho

COSTA MESA -- Soccer players at the Farm Sports Complex may enjoy the

sound of fans cheering them on, but some neighboring residents say they

don’t want to hear it.

“We keep all our doors and windows shut and we still can hear it in

the house,” said Mike Dilsisian, who lives on Lorenzo Avenue directly

behind the park with his wife, Betsy, and their two children, 3-year-old

Benjamin and 11-month-old Julia.

“My kids can’t even take their afternoon naps because it’s so loud,

and it’s not so much the kids playing as the parents cheering. We can’t

go out on the patio on summer nights. The noise really cuts into our

private lives and we’re just looking for a fair compromise.”

The park on Fairview Road at Monitor Way was converted from a farm at

Costa Mesa High School and opened in July to much fanfare, a year later

than planned.

But the beginning of the American Youth Soccer Organization season

last weekend -- and the practice games two weekends ago -- has brought

far more noise than nearby residents had anticipated, Dilsisian said.

Planning Commissioner Katrina Foley, who also lives on Lorenza Avenue,

said at a commission meeting Monday that she has heard several complaints

about the noise.

Based on the complaints, the majority of the noise is on weekends from

about 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and at weeknights when children have games, she

said.

“I think the soccer fields are great, but I have heard from some

residents that it is very noisy,” Foley said at the meeting. “You can’t

keep children from making noise, but maybe we can put up trees or a

wall.”

Limiting park hours might help, Dilsisian suggested.

The noise is not bothering all the park’s neighbors, said Ed Keane, a

Lorenzo Avenue resident.

“I’m just watching and waiting,” he said. “I haven’t had any problems

that I’d complain about yet.”

City Manager Allan Roeder said the recreation staff will meet with

Foley to try to get more specific information about the complaints.