Councilors Flynn & Flaherty to Hold Hearing to Discuss Fines for Large House Parties on Friday, May 28th 

It’s going down for real – hearing will be held to discuss fines for large house parties in the neighborhood.

See press release below

BOSTON – Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn & Councilor At-Large Michael Flaherty will be holding a hearing next Friday, May 28th, at 11am to discuss increasing fines for large house parties. The hearing aims to discuss ways to provide stricter enforcement rules regarding large house parties and the city’s noise ordinance. To watch the hearing, you can go to boston.gov/city-council-tv. To submit written testimony or request to testify at the hearing, please reach out to Juan Lopez at [email protected].

Neighbors have reported an overwhelming number of large house parties, oftentimes between 30-40 people and hosted by renters with absentee landlords – with 600 911 calls in one weekend alone in South Boston. These partiers often disturb neighbors with loud noises at all hours, and leave behind trash and litter on the street which attracts rodents and pests. Last fall, Councilor Flynn and Councilor Flaherty held a hearing with the administration and city officials on this issue.

Residents are to report large house parties to the Boston Police Department at 911, which can trigger potential placement on the city’s Problem Properties List. Councilor Flynn and Councilor Flaherty are urging the City of Boston to look at issuing increased fines for this out-of-control behavior, perhaps starting at $1,000 for a first offense, and exploring $2,000 for a second offense, and $3,000 for a third offense for those that repeatedly violate the city’s noise ordinance.

“I’ve heard from literally hundreds of neighbors that are outraged over these huge house parties in South Boston. Time and again we’re seeing renters, from absentee landlords, who want to extend their college frat days every Thursday to Sunday at all hours while showing blatant disrespect for their neighbors next door; young families, our seniors and persons with disabilities. The neighbors that helped to build this city, that live here and contribute to their community, that are paying increased property taxes while dealing with more quality of life issues – they’ve had enough,” said Councilor Flynn.  “This was a significant issue prior to COVID-19,  and though restrictions will be lifted due to the success of vaccination efforts, large house parties will undoubtedly continue to present these quality of life issues beyond the pandemic. It’s critical that we look to increase fines for those who violate city regulations, so that we help keep our neighborhoods peaceful, healthy and clean.”

“Enough is enough. These out of control parties have been a burden on South Boston and communities across the city for too long,” said Councilor Flaherty. “We have tried to control them with the tools currently available to us, but these landlords and their tenants are not getting the message. It is time to hit absentee landlords and their tenants in the pocketbooks with increased penalties. We have no other choice if we stand any chance of improving the quality of life for our residents.”

For more information, please contact Councilor Flynn’s office at 617-635-3203 or [email protected].