Dubai: Residents who live near a building site in Motor City say that round-the-clock construction noise has made their lives unbearable.
The noise comes from ongoing work on the Oia Residence, an upscale apartment block. An artist’s impression of the project brings to mind a peaceful Greek island paradise — six-storeys of shimmering white walls and aqua-blue windows.
But for nearby residents, ever since the building broke ground around March, life seems more like a Greek tragedy.
Driven to despair by the constant crashing noises, the din of hammers and the low groan of diggers, one resident, who gave his name only as I.V., has tried to fight back.
Tired of being woken up in the middle of the night by construction noise, a resident who lives in an apartment block nearby has conducted his own investigation.
He has so far taken video footage, measured decibel levels with his smartphone, contacted municipal authorities, tried to reason with the on-site crew, and has even called the police. But all to no avail.
When he first moved into Motor City in January, the resident said he was charmed by the tasteful architecture and lush landscaping — all courtesy of Union Properties.
However, his dreams of tranquility were soon shattered. Now, three spot-lit cranes seem only to provide unwelcome visuals to the symphony of suffering.
“The quality of living I have right now is below any criteria,” said the resident.
“During the day, I cannot do a proper job at my working place. I’m coming home, I’m deadbeat, I’m dead tired,” he added.
Others try to block out the noise. A family who live in a crescent-shaped row of villas right on the edge of the building site have spent over Dh6,000 on noise-dampening foam and silicone window covers.
As property owners, the family has deeper concerns — simply moving out is not an option. Similar villas in the complex are on sale for Dh3.8 million, but the high price and construction site means there are few takers.
She urges the developer: “Just give us [quiet] from 11pm to 6am. The rest, fine, we’ll deal with it.”
Another resident who lives in the same villa complex compares the construction noise to “torture.”
“It’s got so bad that we’ve actually booked into a hotel when my husband has important meetings,” said the British expat, who has two children.
In a cruel architectural twist, the crescent-shaped row of villas where they live seems to serve as a literal echo chamber.
“The noise keeps the whole family awake all night long. We’ve tried earplugs, we’ve tried putting curtains rather than blinds. Nothing’s going to stop the fact that it’s inhumane. It is going on 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”
Although two of the residents claimed their own tests showed decibel levels of up to 85 — far above a 45-decibel limit set by Dubai’s municipality — Union Properties (UP) insists that the noise levels remain within permitted levels.
“We impose on all contractors working in UP projects to comply with these guidelines [on noise levels],” Union Properties told Gulf News in a statement.
“We kindly request any resident who at any point recorded noise levels at the project perimeters 80-100 Dbs [decibels] to approach us immediately.”
While all three residents interviewed had complained to Union Properties on multiple occasions, they say their words only fall on deaf ears.
