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Marsha Soriano (left), sleeps on a sofa to escape noise from the bar below |
Dear diary... another night without sleep
Couple complain that noise from bar below flat has put strain on marriage
A TEACHER has revealed how noise from an Islington bar has almost ruined her marriage.
Marsha Soriano has documented her sleepless nights in a noise diary, which will provide vital evidence when councillors review the Ladybird bar’s licence at the Town Hall on Monday.
Her notes, written in the middle of the night, describe how loud music from the Upper Street bar keeps her awake at the flat she shares with her husband Cesar. She has taken sleeping pills and spends part of the night on a sofa to escape the noise.
Bar owner Habib Eldebs maintains he has done everything he can to keep the noise down.
Ms Soriano said: “We’re moving out. We can’t take it any more. We want him to run a business and don’t care if he’s open till 4am, we just don’t want to hear it.
“I had to turn to sleeping pills. I’ve been stressed out, ill a lot. I’ve tried not to let it affect my work but I almost got into a lot of trouble when I had to miss a parents’ evening because I needed sleep. It’s put a big strain on our marriage.”
The couple, who complain that music is so loud they can’t hear their TV, have asked the council to review Mr Eldebs’s licence.
Ms Soriano said: “One night it was so loud the picture frames were rattling on the walls. My bedroom’s in the back and it’s the worst room.
“My sleep pattern has become so irregular. I come home, go to sleep, wake for dinner, stay up extremely late, kip on the sofa until the music stops, then at about 4am move back to my bedroom.
“We’ve even rearranged the furniture in the bedroom, moved the bed and hung a tapestry on the wall to break the sound. I tried to be a good neighbour but when that didn’t work we went to the council.”
The Ladybird is open until 2am weeknights and 4am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Mr Eldebs said: “I’m just trying to run a business. I play music under the level the council has set. My limiters are all set. Only one neighbour is complaining and that’s because she lives above a late-night bar. We start getting busy when other bars close. I’m going to get an ulcer because of the stress.”
He is carrying out soundproofing work for the third time and maintains that, short of treating the bar as if it was a music studio, there is little more he can do.
“I’ve got very good customers,” he said. “When I took over there were gangs, fights and drugs. It took me three months to clear the place. I’ve improved Upper Street by bringing in good customers, trendy and classy people and this is my reward. The people who come here are bringing money to Islington. If you’re living in a place with bars and you’re not happy, just move.
“I’m doing everything I can. I have lowered the noise and pay for security every night.”
4.30 – Louder than TV and I turned it up! to cover up noise.
5.00 – Loud, can’t sleep.
7.00 – Still going, going!
HEARD ALL NIGHT
Excerpt from noise diary |
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