Cut the chatter

This is an open letter to Places Victoria, the City of Melbourne, the Victorian Government and the Boating Industry Association.

I am over 70 years of age and have three loves: my family, books and boats. I have messed about in boats all my life – both sail and power – and we currently share a 40-foot motor boat kept at Pier 35. I am a serious boatie! My wife and I have lived in the Palladio building for four years.

The boat show held at Docklands is superb. I walked through the exhibitions several times over the three-day event and could not be more impressed with the organisation that has gone into it. I congratulate them.

I (we) do have a problem however. The public address system!  I have a business which involves exhibiting at several trade fairs throughout the year – throughout Australia. All of them have PA systems. But few of them have the incessant chatter that goes on at the Docklands boat show over the PA system. There is no need for it!

I was trying to hold a conversation on the first day this year with two different exhibitors and we could not hear ourselves think, let alone converse. One of them rolled his eyes and said “it is not going to stop”. I can only say: “It has to!” The PA system is intrusive – indeed, offensive. If one is trying to hold a conversation about exhibit A, they do not wish to have the virtues of exhibit K  rammed down their throats via a PA system. We do not need loud speakers mounted every 40 feet or so down the boardwalk.

The other thing is that it becomes a peculiar kind of “white noise” after a while and cannot be understood anyway. If you live above it, it develops another dimension altogether. It is intolerable to be subjected to this blaring sound which is bad enough at an open trade fair site, but when it is projected into your own home, it is another thing altogether.

Can I suggest that the system be only used in future to announce that a small child has been lost or found, or perhaps that someone has fallen in the drink. Failing that, it be used for say five minutes at the top and bottom of the hour. The way it is, the only business to benefit is the one supplying the system.

I would welcome any support that fellow residents may wish to offer. We will have to be quick as these things move slowly, and we have only another 12 months.

Tony Mitchell
Docklands