Waterfront residents concerned about late-night gravel trucks
Charlottetown residents say nighttime noise is a health concern
The owners of a bed and breakfast near the Charlottetown waterfront are raising concerns about late night noise coming from the industrial wharf run by Charlottetown Port Authority.
"They're doing it in the middle of the night when the majority of the people are looking for their rest," said Fred Martens, who runs a B&B on Water Street. "We all need our rest for our health and that is essentially what it comes down to."
Marten said this past Saturday, the trucks were hauling gravel from the wharf through the night.
Martens's wife took their concerns to city hall Monday for a meeting with the mayor. The couple claim the night work violates the city's nuisance bylaw.
However, Charlottetown Mayor Clifford Lee said no laws are being broken.
"It's obviously not ideal to have a bed and breakfast across the street from a piece of land that's zoned industrial," said Lee. "I'm not sure there's anything under our rules and regulations that the city can stop the port from doing activity that they're legally entitled to do."
Night work takes place 6 to 12 times a year
Charlottetown Port Authority said Saturday's work involved hauling some of the 60,000 metric tonnes of gravel that have arrived on the Charlottetown waterfront this spring.
Most of it is being trucked out to the airport, where runway expansion is underway. The Port Authority says night work helps ships stay on schedule and keep costs down. Night work takes place at the wharf six to 12 times a year, according to the Port Authority.
Martens says he and his wife plan to start a Facebook page to get discussion going on the issue.
"There has to be work done in the province and in the city. I understand that," said Martens. "We just would like to see that there be some compromise here for the trucks to be loading when it's appropriate hours so people can get their rest."
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