In a new occasional series, the Star delves into 311 data to see what our concerns say about the city. In the second instalment, we look at one of the biggest reasons why people pick up the phone to dial 311: the noise that’s keeping us up at night. Lined by small lots with neat hedges, the tiny residential street of East Haven Drive in southwest Scarborough is almost deserted on a recent chilly Wednesday. Other than the sound of children playing at a nearby school and the odd rev of a car engine on Kingston Road, the most noise comes from the steady beeping of a truck backing up at a nearby condo under construction. This is the heart of the noisiest neighbourhood in Toronto . . . at least it is according to noise complaints filed with 311, the city’s hotline for non-emergency matters.The western chunk of the old Scarborough Southwest ward, home to East Haven Dr., has the most 311 noise service requests so far this year of any area of the city at 360. And there have been 13 noise complaints on the street since 2016, according to the city’s website.The Star went in search of the incredible racket that must be coming from this ordinary residential area, and found … not that much.Read more: Toronto is known for dead raccoons and potholes. The city’s 311 nerve centre knows this reputation is well-earnedConstruction has been “the big one” when it comes to noise issues for the past nine months or so, says Duncan MacDonald, who has lived in the neighbourhood for 21 years. But noise from trucks and other equipment “wasn’t overpowering or anything,” he said. “It’s not quite the end of the world.”An unscientific snapshot of the noise levels there found it was about as loud as High Park. Some residents in the same postal code area of Southwest Scarborough found the sound of children laughing intolerable in 2016. City staff were “inundated” with complaints about a toddler soccer team p ...
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