The clanging and banging of heavy weights hitting the floor is not the wakeup call you’d expect, but several West Loop condo residents said they are being jolted out of bed by weightlifting sounds from a neighboring gym.
“I bet when those people get up at 5:00 AM to go to the gym to work out, they didn’t make a bunch of noise and wake up their family,” said Renae Alkhovsky, a condo owner whose building is attached to The Foundry, a gym located on the ground level at 153 South Jefferson in Chicago.
Alkhovsky and her husband, Jeff, own a condo unit in the building. She said her one-year-old daughter was awaked by the sound of weights early Tuesday morning.
“She doesn’t understand what’s happening and why it’s happening,” Alkhovsky said. “I can’t imagine being asleep in a crib as a one-year-old and not understanding why my crib is vibrating.”
Condo owner Kimberly Buss lives several floors up and told NBC 5 she also hears the weights hitting the floor.
“My dog at times will bark because he thinks somebody’s knocking at the door,” Buss said.
The Alkhovsky family and Buss said they have filed multiple noise complaints against the gym.
Local
According to a spokesperson from the city’s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) department, a community meeting with the Foundry, representatives from the Alderman’s office and members of the community was held in 2018 to address the noise complaints. The spokesperson said while potential alleviation measures were discussed, there were no formal agreements to limit workouts to a certain time frame.
Still, the BACP said it has received notice about ongoing complaints regarding early morning noise at the Foundry and said it is pursuing additional community meetings to discuss corrective actions to address the issues.
Jeff Alkhovsky said the gym should install floor pads to absorb the sound of the weights.
Justin Quandt, founder of the Foundry, told NBC 5 he previously met with the condo board and said he feels blindsided by the Alkhovskys complaint.
“We weren’t aware this was an ongoing issue,” Quandt said.
He said his gym has utilized additional pads and continues to make adjustments.
Still, he said the gym’s relationship with its neighbors is important.
“We love being part of the West Loop community. It is important to work to create a friendly relationship with our neighbors,” Quandt said.
