LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – The Sphere has been lighting up Las Vegas for over a year now, and its first anniversary marked the first time it had outdoor music. Angry neighbors who live nearby came to a meeting Tuesday to demand that the music be restricted because it can be heard 24/7 from their homes. Near the Sphere are vacation rentals, apartments and the condominium towers.
On Wednesday, FOX5 visited the Park Tower Condos to hear what residents, some of whom have lived there for decades, are hearing.
“It hasn’t been turned off since July 4th. 24 hours a day… We live here, some of us since 2001, 2002, and this is our home,” Mike Watson said.
Watson says the first show with sound on July 4 was a shock.
“Unbearably, painfully loud,” Watson described. Watson reported that the windows of the high-rise buildings rattled, the floors shook and people could not sleep.
Now the Sphere wants a noise protection permit so it can host more special events, up to 18 per year.
FOX5 attended the Paradise Town Advisory Board meeting Tuesday night, where neighbors, board members and Sphere representatives tried to reach an agreement on noise levels. Watson and other residents of the 84 condos say they understand loud music on holidays like the 4th or New Year’s, but 18 times a year is way too much. “We’re going to be subjected to very high decibel levels 18 times a year. I don’t know about you. I go to bed at 10 p.m. I don’t go to bed at 10 p.m. those 18 nights a year because the noise would be way too loud,” Watson claimed.
The Paradise Township Advisory Board has approved Sphere’s request for a noise exemption. The request will now be forwarded to the Clark County Commissioners.
Clark County Commissioners will vote on the noise exemption for the Sphere on September 4. The Sphere is in Commissioner Tick Segerblom’s district. Segerblom declined to comment until the commission makes its decision.
There are also a number of shops and restaurants behind the apartment complexes contacted by FOX5 on Wednesday, and none of them reported being affected by the noise at Sphere.
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