Even before the Upright Citizens Brigade opened up their new outpost in the East Village, the neighbors were complaining. First it was about the name—"Hot Chicks Room"—they gave their bar, then the red velvet curtains that reminded them of a brothel, and now that's it's opened, it's the noise. How generic. EV Grieve spotted this note outside of UCB, which is located at 3rd Street and Avenue A—it reads: more ›

In a city of garbage trucks, car alarms, crying babies and neighbors having band practice at 1 a.m. on a Wednesday night, only one noise violation has the honor of being the subject of a Times profile (this week): Loud bars. As the weather cools to being bearable at night, "unregulated" roof and backyard drinking holes are causing a ruckus for neighbors who seem otherwise fine with living in a noisy neighborhood. Michael Jones, the Liquor Authority’s deputy chief boils the argument down to one sentence: "They have a right to run a business, and the community has a right to have quiet and the ability to sleep at night." more ›

Since the Great Taxi Scandal broke earlier this year, it turns out that the Taxi and Limousine Commission initially overestimated how many cabbies were involved with the scam; many drivers have been demanding an apology for their vilification. But judging by the 12,304 complaints filed in the past three years, it seems that riders deserve the bigger apology still. more ›

New Yorkers came in 2nd in a nationwide study tracking complaints filed to 311. In 2009, the city's 311 center "received 224 calls for each 100 residents, compared with 446 in San Francisco, 185 in Charlotte, N.C., 152 in Baltimore, 151 in Chicago, 110 in Miami and 101 in Houston." And here we thought SF was so mellow. So what are we complaining about? CityRoom says our top concerns were noise, alternate-side-of-the-street parking regulations, lack of heat or hot water, bus or subway service, and lost property in taxis. And over on the west coast, they're worrying about street cleaning, graffiti removal, public housing services, and abandoned vehicles. Hey Midtown, speak up a little more and maybe we can be #1 next year. more ›

Back in 2008 Brooke Shields purchased a four-apartment Greek Revival townhouse on West 10th Street in the West Village. At the time, Curbed noted it was "going to take some serious work to combine into a single-family mansion, but Brooke Shields is up to the challenge." Flash forward to today, when the Daily News reports that her neighbors are fed up with construction, which starts around 6 a.m. every morning and has been going on for months. more ›

While silence is nearly extinct in the world, we never really had much hope of being surrounded by it in New York City anyway. But would you believe that the most quiet place you're going to find in Manhattan is in Midtown? At least if you go by the amount of residential noise complaints—which can consist of loud music, talking, television noise, and we're guessing strangers having sex. more ›

The saga on Jane Street continues, as neighbors unite against the Jane Hotel's nightlife crowd. Andrea Peyser pens a piece about the battle, pitting children with asthma ("every night, choking smoke fills the family's living space") against bold-faced party-goers like the Kate Winslet and Edward Norton. Yep, the modern-day Tiny Tim lives in a multi-million dollar Manhattan home with a backyard! more ›

Yesterday Curbed quietly pointed out that the West Village residents were rallying against the Jane Hotel, particularly the establishment's plan for a rooftop bar. Rumor has it neighbors were promised entrance to the place if they would just STFU, but since late last month they've been airing their complaints on a blog called Nightmare on Jane Street. more ›

Over a dozen local residents who live (if you can call it that!) near the Thompson LES Hotel on Allen Street showed up at a Community Board 3 meeting last night to complain about traffic congestion, rowdy tools crowding their sidewalks, and noise noise NOISE echoing up into their windows from the newly-opened third floor rooftop pool bar. (Which, it should be noted, is open only to hotel guests—or anyone who gets a bite to eat at the hotel restaurant Shang!) How obstreperous are those bastards drinking and swimming and digesting Susur Lee's lamb chops? Well, one neighbor says their opening parties were so loud she couldn't hear her TV. Clearly, this monstrosity must be razed or urinated on at once. more ›

Over the past few years graffiti has been on the rise citywide, so it's no surprise that 2008 saw an increase in the colorful activity as well. The Daily News reports on some new NYPD stats, noting that while graffiti complaints were up 10% on a whole, Brooklyn in particular is losing its battle against vandals, reporting more complaints and less arrests in 2008. more ›

Last year the Complaint Choir voiced their grievances in Chicago, and yesterday it was New York's turn. Complaints Choir, an internationally acclaimed community art project, was organized by The New Wilderness Foundation in collaboration with the P.S. 1 Contemporary Art Center and the New York-based Finnish Cultural Institute. Meeting at 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon at Mehanata Bulgarian Bar, those in attendance had the project explained to them, as videos were shown, and lyrics were created. From the press release:

Participants write down their gripes ­ whether they reflect life's tiny inconveniences, personal angst or cosmic conundrums and together edit their list into a set of lyrics, usually breaking into expert groups focusing on particular subjects. The composer (Alan Licht, whose work combines elements of pop, free jazz and minimalism) then turns those lyrics into a song, with the instruction that it be upbeat, if not downright anthemic. After sufficient rehearsal, the choir performs publicly.

The rowdy drunken yahoos stumbling out of nightclubs on the Lower East Side and East Village have some residents nostalgic for the old days of pre-gentrified lawlessness. 47-year-old Frances Ayers, who lives at Rivington and Ludlow streets, tells the Post, "At least with the drug dealers there wasn't any noise." Since July 2007, when the city’s stricter noise code went into effect, complaints recorded by local community boards have boomed. more ›

According to new NYPD statistics, graffiti complaints in Brooklyn rose 96% last year, with arrests in the borough increasing by 33%. Citywide, complaints almost doubled from 4,886 in 2006 to 8,866 in 2007, and total arrests rose from 2,962 to 3,786. Williamsburg leads the tagging trend with a total of 186 complaints. more ›