Holyoke City Council restores WWII siren tradition after much discussion

HOYLOKE — A decades-long tradition in Holyoke will continue after the City Council elected to amend city ordinances to allow the World War II air raid siren at 109 Lyman St. to sound every Friday at noon.

The decision, which followed a lengthy discussion and the passage of two readings, comes after the city recently issued a noise complaint cease and desist to The Wherehouse for its longstanding practice of blaring the siren.

According to prior Reminder Publishing reporting, the Holyoke Police Department notified the zoning official from of the Building Department of an anonymous complaint received on its SeeClickFix system regarding the air raid siren. After review, the zoning official said that the air raid siren conflicts with the city of Holyoke Code of Ordinances; Appendix A, Zoning; 6.5 Performance Standards.

But after the city solicitor’s office evaluated the opinion of the zoning official about that decision, Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia said in a statement on his Facebook page that, with the help of city councilors-including the leadership of City Councilor Patti Devine and Mike Sullivan-the city successfully navigated the zoning and ordinance process to find a “balanced, legal path forward.”

Garcia officially signed the order, which allows the siren to go for no more than two minutes, into law the day after the council’s March 17 meeting.

“The Holyoke City Council passed an order to allow the historic World War II-era air raid siren, located at 109 Lyman Street at The Wherehouse, to sound once again every Friday at noon for up to two minutes,” Garcia said. “This order amends our local ordinances to exempt this specific cultural and historical sounding from noise restrictions, ensuring it can continue as a weekly reminder of our city’s resilience and heritage.”

Reminders of the horn’s significance in the community rang throughout the meeting after Ward 7 City Councilor Meg Magrath-Smith presented the order to the full council.

Devine said he heard that the tradition has been going on for 75 years, and when he looks on Facebook, very few are against it. “I see no reason why we can’t vote on it tonight,” he said.

At Large City Councilor Howard Greaney remembered his time as a young child when the sounding of the siren coalesced with the dawn of the nuclear age.

“I am completely in support of this item,” Greaney said. “It’s a reminder that we always must be ready and be prepared to handle any adversary who may try to come and enter our shores and take over our beautiful country.”

At Large City Councilor Israel Rivera touched on the nostalgic feel of hearing the horn while he was a child “growing up in the flats.” He also noted that he hopes the people living in the Lyman Terrace and Saint Kolbe Drive vicinity are more fairly represented when it comes to these discussions.

“For me, it is a nostalgic piece,” Rivera said. “But there are other things happening in the city where residents speak up and they’re heard. I just hope that it would resonate that it happens in Ward 1 too, as well.”

Despite councilors’ overall appreciation for the horn, there was still some hesitance from a few who felt that a further discussion in a future committee meeting was necessary before officially voting on the matter.

Ward 4 City Councilor Richard Purcell said that as a United States Army veteran, he is entirely on board with keeping the siren intact but felt like it was necessary to reach out to veterans organizations in the community before jumping to a vote.

“I’m in favor of the siren, but it has to do with if it’s due process because this is not an emergency situation that requires emergency action,” he said.

At Large City Councilor Mimi Panitch agreed with Purcell’s sentiments, adding that she’s heard at least one person with PTSD say that the siren bothers him. She said she loves the siren but suggested that the council conduct an anonymous veterans survey to see if this problem was pervasive.

Devine said he heard that the tradition has been going on for 75 years, and when he looks on Facebook, very few are against it. “I see no reason why we can’t vote on it tonight,” he said.

A vote to send the motion to committee failed by a 6-6 vote. Ultimately, the council passed the ordinance by an 11-1 vote with Ward 6 City Councilor Juan Anderson Burgos being the lone dissenter because he wanted the order sent to committee. He, did, however, say he supported the Holyoke tradition.