Yeah, Right, Whatever

Whitestown and New York Mills police have received complaints of loud music played by the Albany-based ice cream vendor Mr. Ding-a-Ling, which has routes in and around Utica.

As a result, a manager for the company said the ice cream truck won't drive through New York Mills until a compromise is reached.

....On May 20 in Whitestown, the driver was charged with using a noise device to sell ice cream and selling after permitted hours.

....New York Mills Police Chief Bradley Frankland said the village has a law that prevents peddlers and solicitors from using noise to sell their goods.

"This has been going on for three years," Frankland said. "It's not a thing against Mr. Ding-a-Ling or private enterprise. It's that these are the rules."

New York Mills noise laws prohibit "noise from any sound reproduction system ... that reproduces or amplifies sound in a manner as to be heard 60 feet from its sources or over any property line," according to the village code book.

The law is similar in Whitestown: A peddler such as Mr. Ding-a-Ling cannot "blow a horn, ring a bell or use any other noisy device to attract public attention to his or her wares," the town code book says.

....In Whitestown, a number of residents complained about too much noise and the hours of operation, Police Chief Donald Wolanin said.

"Some were concerned the ice cream man might come at 9 p.m. and it might be getting too late for a 10-year-kid to be going over to an ice cream truck," Wolanin said.

Come on, people! Ice cream guys (or the "Bomb Pop Man" as my grandpa used to call him) don't drive around after dark. They understand that the parents make or break them. They're the ones who give their kids the money to spend on the yummies in the truck. They're not going to do anything to blow it.

Getting goodies from the Bomb Pop Man is part of growing up. Way to go, folks. Ruin it for your kids. Yeah, the songs are annoying (but think of the poor guy who gets to hear it 10-12 hours a day every day). But... they're just trying to make a living, the same way they have for decades.

mmm... bomb pops... dang... now I'm hungry.

// posted by Beth @ 5:14 PM |