Residents only moved into the Ballard Landmark senior living facility on Leary Way Aug. 15, and already there has been a complaint from a resident about late-night noise coming from Ballard Avenue, which runs by the back rooms of the facility.

Mary Shepard, executive director of the Ballard Landmark, said a resident called the police at 2:30 a.m. because the noise from Ballard Avenue, site of a large number of the neighborhood's bars and music venues, was keeping her awake.

"Now she wants to switch rooms - which is going to be a problem," Shepard said.

City council member Sally Clark said there are conflicts over noise between bars and clubs and new residences, such as condos, in all areas of the city. With new condos, a hotel and the senior living facility moving into Ballard's downtown core, there seems to be the potential for Ballard to become a hotspot for that conflict.

"When they sold off all that property from the old car dealership (on Leary), I think everybody saw the writing on the wall that there were going to be more residences," Clark said. "Hopefully, people moving into those residences will realize they are moving into what has been an entertainment strip."

Amee Shepard is the bar manager at Hattie's Hat on Ballard Avenue. The bar and restaurant is located directly across the street from the site for the planned Olympic Athletic Club hotel.

People moving in need to expect noise and people and recognize that they aren't moving into a rural area, she said.

Jim Riggle, owner of the Olympic Athletic Club, said he thought about the noise issue early on and is not concerned about it. He said places like the Tractor Tavern may actually draw people to the hotel, unlike the senior living facility, because they are there to see the city.

In order to address the noise issue, Mary Shepard said the Ballard Landmark installed state-of-the-art windows to reduce noise. However, those windows have not had a chance to work because they have been kept open during the summer months.

She said she hopes the windows will help keep residents' rooms quieter once the weather turns cool.

Clark said the city, under a new nightlife ordinance, is doing what it can to help ease the conflict between residences and bars and clubs.

Last year, noise regulations changed from a subjective idea - noise at an inappropriate level - to a quantifiable measurement.

Though what the measurement is has not been decided yet, Clark said the city plans on having staff members who can show up to settle complaints with noise meters.

"My hope is that it will help us get out of the finger-pointing conflict," she said. "You've got to have something you can point to so you aren't just pointing at each other."

At the moment, noise complaints are, understandably, far down on the police's list of priorities, Clark said.

Mary Shepard said she plans on continuing to call the police if there are complaints about late-night noise from Ballard Avenue because she does not know what else to do.

For her part, Amee Shepard said she hopes residents at the Ballard Landmark, down the street from Hattie's, are moving into Ballard because they recognize it is a hip neighborhood.

"I'm hoping they aren't the golf-course retirees," she said. "I'm hoping they're more the Manhattan martini-type people."

Michael Harthorne may be reached at 783.1244 or michaelh@robinsonnews.com