Mayor to Mister Softee: You're driving N.Y. nuts

By Walter Hamilton
Los Angeles Times

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But Mayor Michael Bloomberg, in a sweeping anti-noise initiative unveiled last week, is targeting an unlikely — and some say, blameless — noisemaker: the city's ubiquitous ice-cream trucks.

Bloomberg's proposal would force the roving ice-cream vendors to silence the jingles that ring out from their trucks as they cruise city neighborhoods. Instead, they would have to rely on old-fashioned bells to announce their presence.

The plan is part of Bloomberg's effort to lower the general din throughout Manhattan's five boroughs. He also proposes to curb barking dogs, ear-splitting jackhammers and moaning air conditioners.

But the assault on ice-cream trucks has stirred the greatest debate. Ice-cream sellers say a ban on jingles could imperil their business. Some residents are sympathetic, saying the prohibition would deprive the city of a sound that conjures nostalgic memories of childhood.

"It's a good noise," said Debbie Stein, of Manhattan, who often buys ice cream for her children from the vendors.

"We have worse problems in the world than someone playing music," said Michelle Gallo, a franchisee of Mister Softee, whose trucks are fixtures throughout the city. "We're not trying to hurt anyone. We're just trying to sell ice cream."

Mister Softee drivers in Manhattan insist they play their jingle sparingly, in part because they park at high-traffic intersections where they're plainly visible.

"I never play the music," said Peter Floros, who drives a Mister Softee truck on the Upper East Side. "Most people ask me to play the music."

Upon request, Floros played the song at full volume. Few passers-by noticed, and no one seemed disturbed.

The melodies are crucial to other trucks that roam the streets in search of customers. Many people are bothered by the noise, said Jordan Barowitz, a Bloomberg spokesman.
 
"Noise is the No. 1 quality-of-life complaint in New York City," Barowitz said, adding that the city received about 250 complaints last month about ice-cream trucks.

"When a truck is parked in front of your house and it's running its jingle for hours on end, it gets pretty annoying," he said.

Current law limits the playing of the tunes to once every 10 minutes, but the ban is widely ignored and impossible to enforce, Barowitz said.

If passed by the City Council, the ban on jingles would start in 2006, forcing reliance on bells.

"They'll still be able to do the necessary notification so kids will know the ice-cream truck is in the neighborhood," Barowitz said. "The kids have developed a Pavlovian response to the jingle. I'm sure they'll develop a similar response to the bells."

Still, to some New Yorkers, there are better ways to achieve peace and quiet.

"It's ridiculous," said Dorothy Terminelle, 75, as she ate a cup of vanilla soft serve dipped in chocolate. "The children hear the (jingle), they want to get their ice cream. It's part of living. It's a treat."