Letters to the Editor
Unruly Midnight Boats
Brian Andrews
Some would say the vibe in Downtown Miami is largely positive. We have new buildings, new restaurants, and lots of new neighbors arriving from all over the world! However, there’s another vibe in Downtown Miami that few people living along the north and south sides of the Miami River are happy about.
It’s the late-night vibe of passing pleasure boaters blaring their sound systems into the night. On any given Friday night, Saturday night, or Sunday night after midnight, you can hear all your favorite Reggaeton and profanity-laced pop hits as if you were sitting in a stadium at a high decibel concert. The noise is amplified off the water and off the sides of the condo towers.
It lasts for about 3 minutes and then fades into the night. The noise is jarring enough to wake you up, rattle your windows, and make you upset. These boaters have created a new host of concerns our City and its law enforcement agencies must address.
Call for Help
A call to the non-emergency number of the Miami PD has offered little help as the offending boater has usually passed the mouth of the river by the time you can tell an operator on the line to make a complaint. A call to FWC usually results in your call being routed to an after-hours number in Tallahassee that can’t scramble resources fast enough to deal with the situation.
Your DNA Board has asked the Miami Police to help us find a solution. A reasonable person would expect a responsible boat operator to be courteous as they transit waterways in residential areas. The mouth of the Miami River looks very residential to me, lined with tall towers and hundreds of condo units. The Police tell us they’re now willing to work with FWC to start late night details to stop and cite boaters who are disturbing the peace.
We’ve suggested a regular crackdown. Since these charter captains and boat operators will only listen to reason when money is involved, we think the captain of the vessel needs to be cited with a fine if they are caught playing loud music after 11 pm. Another option would be to put social pressure on the issue. Downtowners who spot offending vessel could also shoot video with their phones and tweet clips of the offending vessels to @MiamiPD and @MyFWC.
This is an issue we as Downtowners really need to “make some noise” about and help our local law enforcement agencies hold vessel operators accountable.
Brian Andrews is the President of The News Directors, Inc., a firm specializing in strategic & crisis communications for local governments. Mr. Andrews is a former investigative reporter/anchor with CBS, WSVN, and Noticias RCN in Colombia.
