Neighbours complain that noise from compressors on the industrial complex's roof keeps them awake. (CBC)

Some residents of a condominium development in Richmond, B.C., say they have been driven to distraction by constant industrial noise that they claim violates a city noise bylaw but has not been stopped.

"When you take people's sleep away, they go a little crazy, right? We are literally starting to go a little crazy," said Lisa Robinson, a resident of the Riverwind development.

"If you had a house party that was above a certain amount of decibels and it was a nuisance, the cops would be over shutting it down in an instant," added another resident, Michael Burke.

The noise is coming from compressors on the roof of an industrial complex next door, in a "mixed use" area — zoned by the city for both residential and industrial use.

Five large compressors have been running 24 hours a day, since being installed three months ago as part of the refrigeration system at a fish distribution business.

Resident Adrianna Minella said she has been so angry about losing sleep that she called a city official at 4 a.m. to leave a complaint by voicemail, and held up the phone so he could hear the noise.

Machines, seen here outside a bedroom window, run all night. (CBC)

"You worry about your family. You worry about your pets. You worry about your own health," said Minella. "You are not functioning at work, because how can you function on four hours of sleep?"

City OK'd rezoning, renovation

The suburban municipality south of Vancouver approved the installation of the compressors in July, as part of a million-dollar expansion of True World Foods, which has operated at the location since 1997. The city approved the adjacent condominium development several years after that.

"Why did the city allow it to be zoned from light industrial to residential — knowing that there could be this much effect on somebody's life?" asked Burke.

Noise monitors from Vancouver Coastal Health, the regional health agency, have been to the site nine times to test the noise levels in response to complaints. Records show levels consistently well above 45 decibels, the maximum allowed in a residential area under the noise bylaw.

"The only good decibel level is no decibel level, thank you very much," said Edward Evanko, who lives in the complex. "I can't keep going around hearing 45 levels, 89 levels — whatever. It doesn't really matter. It's our ears, it's our health, our homes, which are being invaded."

Condominium owners say the City of Richmond created problems with mixed zoning. (CBC)

The residents said they are not upset with the business, but blame the city for poor planning.

"We need to be in on this from the very beginning," said Minella, suggesting that public health officials should track commercial renovation applications and flag any that are near residences.

Steve Pecarsky, Western Canada manager of True World Foods, said he is "disconcerted" by the situation.

"We should have been made aware of the residential bylaw — that there is this restriction that could be applied to us," said Pecarsky. "We are in compliance right now with the [higher] levels allowed in an industrial zone."

Trying to mute problem

Pecarsky said the city initially advised True World Foods to hire an acoustical engineer to fix the problem. He said the engineer charged $30,000 and worked for weeks with no improvement. October's reading was actually higher than those taken in September.

"We feel bad about the neighbours," said Pecarsky. "We want to be good corporate citizens and all of that, absolutely, and we will solve the problem."

True World Foods vice-president Steve Pecarsky says he's disconcerted the city approved the renovations that ended up violating the city's noise bylaw. (CBC)

True World Foods now is spending another $30,000 to move the two largest compressors inside its building, which it hopes will cut the noise sufficiently. Pecarsky said the city could have saved everyone a lot of grief and money by not approving the roof installation in the first place.

"The noise issue was completely after the fact," said Pecarsky.

"This certainly has the attention of our senior staff, and mayor and council," said Derek Dang, a city councillor. "After this escapade, we may have to do some more investigation into seeing how we can make sure that doesn't happen again."

'After this escapade, we may have to do some more investigation.'

—Derek Dang, Richmond councillor

When asked why the city approved the residential development so close to industry, he replied: "That's a good question. I think the city has lots of different types of development throughout the city, and we have things called mixed use, where you have people living where they work."

Dang said the city has not fined True World Foods or taken any steps toward shutting it down, because the business has been trying to abate the noise.

Richmond Coun. Derek Dang says the noise dispute won't go on much longer. (CBC)

Residents said the city created the problem and then threw it around like a hot potato, from public health to bylaw enforcement to business licensing.

"No one is talking to each of the other different departments. People keep spinning their wheels," said Burke.

However, Dang said, partly because of the public attention, "I don't think that we are going to allow it to go on for very much longer."

Robinson said she can't believe her three-year-old son had to suffer for three months while the city did nothing but take tests.

"He wakes up crying," said Robinson. "He's completely innocent in all of this, you know, and he's so affected by this."

She said the residents should not have had to make a fuss simply to get a bylaw enforced.

"We are a family. We live here. We expect, when we come home at the end of the day, to have peace and quiet."