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Mayor’s Message

Progress on Las Olas

Noise Control

obody likes trying to enjoy a meal with the family on Las Olas while
cars blaring music and motorcycles with loud exhausts pass by. With the
Nassistance of new state legislation, the City of Fort Lauderdale is moving
Dean Trantalis
Mayor to remedy that as well as some other issues on our roadways that are becoming
City of Fort Lauderdale increasing problems.
dtrantalis@fortlauderdale.gov
For a while now, city commissioners and I have complained about the deafening
noise from drivers cruising down Las Olas Boulevard or along A1A. Our Police
Department, though, maintained that its ability to intervene was limited. This was
largely because the state Supreme Court struck down a key section of a statute
regarding vehicle noise as unconstitutional a decade ago.
But last month, Gov. DeSantis signed legislation that is plainly worded – noise from
a vehicle cannot be audible at a distance of 25 feet or more in most areas. This
could be a tremendous help in addressing the situation as we cannot allow noise to
become out of control.
City Hall, 8th Floor We don’t want our main streets where residents and tourists go to enjoy a walk,
100 N Andrews Ave
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33311 or a meal or a drink to evolve into the scenes transpiring on Ocean Drive in South
Beach. We need to keep our reputation intact as a place to go for an enjoyable,
family-friendly experience. Our police force has begun a public awareness
campaign to reduce the number of disturbances caused by vehicles. But we also
now need to begin heightened enforcement.
New state legislation also is going to allow us to crack down on groups of
motorcyclists, bicyclists and ATV-riders who try to take over our streets. This has
become a way too common occurrence in Fort Lauderdale. The normal flow of
traffic has been impeded, drivers and their passengers have felt threatened, and the
possibility of accidents and confrontations has grown. These gangs have blocked

Office Contact intersections and used our streets as a performance space for their personal thrills as
Scott Wyman they undertake dangerous maneuvers.
Chief of Staff
Office of the Mayor The governor and the Legislature recognized that these actions are as hazardous
swyman@fortlauderdale.gov as street-racing once was. The new law expands prohibited conduct on roadways
954.828.5314 to cover these types of “street takeovers.” Officers can arrest individuals
involved without a warrant if they have probable cause and charge them with a
misdemeanor offense. Their vehicle can also be impounded.
The commission has asked the Police Department, our top staff and attorneys to
come up with plans to improve enforcement in light of the new powers that the state
has provided us.
Finally, there is a ray of hope that the city can do more to address aggressive
panhandling on our streets.
The City Commission has received many complaints about the raise of panhandling
and the increasing aggressiveness of those seeking money in our streets.

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