Earsplitting fire alarms ring randomly for hours at Avalon's new Amityville apartment complex

Residents of a new Amityville apartment complex have had to endure ear-piercing fire alarms randomly going off for more than a year — at times for as long as two hours — prompting village officials to enforce nuisance violations.

Some tenants, who pay up to $3,800 per month in rent, say they won't renew their leases with AvalonBay Communities Inc., which operates the complex that was  completed in  May on Broadway. Village officials worry that with so many complaints of false alarms, residents have become immune to them and won't evacuate during a real emergency.

The Amityville fire and police departments have responded to 21 false alarms since August 2023, village officials said.

Avalon Amityville tenants said their lives have been upended by the shrill alarms, which have rung as early as 6 a.m. and on at least one occasion sounded until almost 2 a.m. The high-pitched alerts last anywhere from two minutes to two hours and have disrupted everything from tenants’ sleep to family barbecues while causing stress to children and pets, residents said.

"The whole building, it sounds like a rock concert," said Scott Cackett, 53, who moved into a one-bedroom loft in October. He pays $3,800 a month, including fees and utilities. "It’s ridiculous. And there’s no end in sight."

Village officials said they've grown impatient with the company and issued two summons to AvalonBay for violating state law on maintaining equipment and systems, and for violating village law for having a system that "emits a false call or alarm." The maximum fine for each charge is $250, according to Michael Breitweg, Amityville's building inspector.

The company is due in village court on Sept. 10.

In response to inquiries from Newsday, AvalonBay apologized for the errant alarms.

In a statement, AvalonBay vice president Scott Fishbone said the company has "worked closely and consistently with the Town, Village, and our 3rd party vendors to address false fire alarms and ensure building safety, which is our top priority."

The fire alarm system "continues to function as designed to protect our residents and associates ..." the statement continued. He said company officials "understand and apologize for the inconvenience the testing and troubleshooting has caused as we worked to stop the false alarms."

Company officials said the cause of the false alarms was "investigated and determined to be due largely to construction-related issues, such as dust and rainwater, which can occur during the construction process."

The company did not respond to multiple Newsday questions, including what it will take to stop the false alarms from ringing so frequently.

Crying wolf

Some renters moved into their apartments last fall, while construction on other units was still underway. 

Rent for a one-year lease on a one-bedroom apartment ranges from $2,607 to $3,880 per month, according to the company's website. The complex has 317 apartments and 21 townhomes. 

Breitweg said he is concerned the alarm issue has caused "complacency." 

"They’re not evacuating when the alarms are going off," Breitweg said.

Residents have become "lackadaisical" over the building's alarms, Amityville Mayor Dennis Siry said.

"It’s become like the boy who cried wolf," he said. "We tried to work with [AvalonBay], but now it’s to the point where peoples’ safety is an issue."

On its website, the company touts that residents can "live your life effortlessly," highlighting amenities such as a "state-of-the-art" fitness center and a heated pool. "This is not just apartment living. This is living up," Avalon's website says.

Sleep interruptions

Candice Hughes, 43, lives in a two-bedroom apartment with a loft along with her two young children. She said she pays $4,300 in rent, fees and utilities.

"At first it was frustrating, but then it became more of a safety issue for my children," she said, "because now we’re living in this building where literally nobody evacuates."

Her 9-year-old son gets migraines, and the alarms trigger the headaches, she said. Her children missed school after one alarm went off in February at 10:44 p.m. and lasted until nearly 2 a.m., keeping them awake the whole night, she recalled.

"At this point, we’re just forced to deal with it," she said. "I cover their ears, put on headphones ... but there’s no real escaping it. You just hope there’s someone who can turn them off quickly."

After the February incident, Savannah Mutell, 27, said she had to miss work the next day and that her ears were ringing long afterward.

Mutell, who pays $3,800 in monthly rent, worries that her hearing has been damaged. She said she will not renew her lease in the fall.

"There are times when I will still feel like I’m hearing an alarm," she said.

The piercing sound has distressed her two cats.

"My pets are traumatized," she said. "Every time the alarms go off they’re shaking, hiding, their hearts are racing."

Courtney Thompson, 40, had to carry her 11-year-old French bulldog up and down three floors whenever an alarm sounded. Thompson, who pays $3,600 per month for her one-bedroom unit, said she won't renew her lease.

"You see this beautiful complex with these amenities and it’s supposed to be luxury living and then this is what you’re dealing with," she said.

As a nurse who works nights, Rachel Weiss, 26, has to sleep during the day. But since moving to her studio apartment in April, she has found her sleep repeatedly interrupted and worries it could impact her work.

"I have a very high, critical care job," she said. "I need to be rested."

A 'shot in the arm'

AvalonBay sends emails after the false alarms ring with explanations for the noise, said residents, who shared the emails with Newsday. 

In a March 2 email, the company wrote: "Our fire alarms were activated this morning due to our cleaning service ... which caused dust to set off the fire alarms." 

Other emails cited "construction activity" and "water flow activation."

On at least 25 occasions, AvalonBay also has sent emails warning that the alarms could go off at any time as part of system testing or repairs. Sometimes, the emails gave a window of up to seven hours.

Fishbone's statement addressed the frequent testing. 

"We have kept community members updated on how we are actively addressing the issue, providing 24- to 48-hours’ notice before any testing or inspection," he said. "We also have contacted residents whenever the alarm activated without prior notification to provide an explanation."

Village officials said they understand residents’ aggravation. During a 12-day period in June, village fire and police personnel responded to five false alarms at the complex, according to village officials.

According to the emails, at least a dozen more false alarms have occurred beyond the 21 the village has logged.

The complex on the former Brunswick Hospital campus had been eyed as key to revitalizing downtown Amityville. When construction on the complex started in 2021, Siry said the development would be a "great shot in the arm for Amityville" and bring new life to the village.

Siry said now he’s "absolutely worried" about what AvalonBay’s alarm troubles mean for fire safety as well as downtown revitalization efforts.

"It would behoove them to get this fixed because they want to have a successful place," Siry said. "In the end it would benefit everybody."

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.