Westfield, N.J. Residents Complain About Loud Parties After Neighbor Puts Swimming Pool On Rental App

WESTFIELD, N.J. (CBSNewYork) — Neighbors in one Union County town say a pool rental app has ruined the end of their summer.

They shared video with CBS2’s Meg Baker from a recent weekend evening on Carleton Street in Westfield. You can hear loud music and loud voices, and see billowing smoke.

The people in the video don’t live there. They were just renting the pool.

“We noticed it because late night parties, lights, drones, loud music, etc.,” one resident named Lara told Baker.

The homeowner is renting out the pool through the app, Swimply. The site reads, “escape locally… enjoy yourself, your own private pool, by the hour.”

Neighbors said 20 to 30 cars pull up every Saturday and Sunday night.

“There’s been lots of weed, lots of drinking. My concern is that these people are driving somewhere,” Lara said. “I have to have my kids come in when there is so much weed. We are all going to get contact highs.”

“There is one time, 10:15 on a Sunday night,” resident Lauren Kolaya added. “There’s a porta potty in the driveway, and I can see it right from my front porch when I sit here.”

Neighbors said the pool has become an event space that no one monitors.

No one currently lives at the property. Baker tried calling and left a message for the owners, but has not gotten a response.

The police have been called more than a dozen times, responded and the partiers complied, turning down music and leaving.

Chief Christopher Battiloro spoke to the homeowner, whom after so many complaintsm minimized the number of guests allowed on the property.

“He has communicated to us that he’s looking to offset the cost of his mortgage by renting his pool out on weekends, and presently it doesn’t violate any statute or ordinance,” he said.

Councilman Mark Parmelee said the council will look for ways to regulate pool rentals, as municipalities across the country confront issues with apps like this.

“I’ve seen different methods of banning them. So, for example, either characterizing them as public pool, requiring the owner of the pool to comply with elevated standards, or prohibiting the practice altogether. For example, Toms River prohibits altogether,” he said.

He said he sees how the app could benefit kids for parties during the day or in a more rural community, but in a developed area like Westfield, it puts the burden on the adjacent properties. For now, this is legal.

Parmelee also said he will be looking into a porta potty ordinance.

CBS2’s Meg Baker contributed to this story.

from CBS New York https://newyork.cbslocal.com/2021/09/06/westfield-n-j-residents-complain-about-loud-parties-after-neighbor-puts-swimming-pool-on-rental-app/
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