construction

Construction noise angers residents and draws city fines

Panama City permits construction every day of the week, but only until 7 p.m., and not before 8 a.m. on weekends and holidays.

800-7326 is the number to call 24 hours a day to file a complaint against construction companies that break the rules about making noise.

MAYDÉE ROMERO/LA PRENSA

Disturbing the peace: Construction in residential neighborhoods during prohibited hours has been occurring throughout the city.953080

The construction of countless new residential and commercial buildings is changing the face of Panama, once a relatively quiet city by the sea. And more often than not these days, the work has been exceeding the patience and tolerance of residents living in the areas under development, not to mention that it´s against the law during certain hours.

Complaints about the noise created by construction work, especially at night and on weekends, has pitted residents against construction companies and their workers, according to Eliécer Barsallo of the Municipio of Panamá.

Almost everyone living next to or nearby an active construction site is fed up with the vibrations and noise made by building crews and their cranes, trucks and other machinery. Now they have a number to call to report the illicit building activity that disturbs the peace they used to enjoy in their homes.

That number is 800-7236, and the line is open 24 hours a day.

The laws about the permissible hours for construction work are clear. Construction work is permitted every day of the week, but only until 7 p.m. On weekends and holidays construction may not begin before 8 a.m. Construction companies that repeatedly flout the law may be fined up to $3000.The rules ought to be respected, Barsallo said.

Yet people living near buildings under construction say building companies and related businesses keep working long after the sun goes down, using high-powered lights to illuminate their work.

Engineer Ernesto Jiménez, who works with the Cámara Panameña de la Construcción, agrees that the established hours and the right of communities to their hours of rest should be respected.

However, he says, in certain situations the work has to be done at night. Sometimes cement trucks arrive late, for example, not because the construction company asked for a late delivery, but because the drivers were delayed and the work of emptying the trucks can´t wait until the following day.