SHEFFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio — Neighbors in a Sheffield Village neighborhood say they’ve been dealing with a persistent sound coming from the nearby wastewater treatment plant for months.
“I would describe it as a large whistle. I heard someone say it sounds like a mosquito in their ear,” said Dan Roth.
His neighbor, Chuon Lath, added, “It sounds like a small airplane is running over there.”
They said the high-pitched whining is coming from the nearby French Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant.
“You’re trying to enjoy the backyard and you hear this constant noise,” Roth said. “I have hearing issues. I actually wear hearing aids; I have tinnitus. And if I can hear it over that, that says something about how loud the noise is.”
He contacted News 5 about the issue because he said he’s been frustrated that it hasn’t been addressed since it started in January or February of this year.
“We don’t want to be mean neighbors or anything. We just want both the water treatment plant and us to both be good neighbors,” he said.
His neighbors agreed that the longer the noise persists, the more irritating it becomes.
“That thing is coming through your head, like ‘wee,’” said Lath, comparing it to a fly.
Both men said they’ve attended Sheffield Village Council meetings to share their concerns.
“I live close to it, I hear it, I feel their pain. I understand that, especially now during the summer when people are outside,” said Sheffield Village Mayor Bob Markovich.
He explained the treatment plant processes wastewater from Sheffield Village, North Ridgeville and Avon. Though it’s located within village limits, it’s owned and operated by the city of North Ridgeville.
Markovich said the noise coming from the plant is not loud enough to violate any noise pollution rules or local ordinances. He told News 5 the village has been working with the plant superintendent and North Ridgeville leaders to address the problem.
“How do we create a short-term solution in order to dampen the noise as much as we can and then work out a long-term solution?” he said.
North Ridgeville Mayor Kevin Corcoran told News 5 that engineers believe the noise is coming from new equipment installed earlier this year.
He said the city has been working with the equipment manufacturer, engineers and contractors to assess the issue and determine the next steps. This week, the mayor said the team attempted to dampen the noise with a short-term solution, but it was not as effective as they had hoped.
Roth said, “I would think there’s some temporary solution to muffle the noise, to keep it down.”
While North Ridgeville pledges to continue working toward a solution, he and others said the persistent noise has been affecting their routines and quality of life.
“It definitely limits how often we go outside and how long we’re outside. And unfortunately, because we know that noise is there, even when we go into the house, we still hear it,” he said. “One of the reasons I’m talking to you now is we just don’t want this to happen again, where it drags on and on for years.”
Catherine Ross is the Lorain County reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on X @CatherineRossTV, on Facebook CatherineRossTV or email her at Catherine.Ross@wews.com.
