Greenpoint residents are calling cut on a TV show that they claim takes up too many parking spaces and causes too much noise.
Neighbors of the Eagle Street production stage that houses the network musical “Smash” say the fledgling show’s crew regularly parks in loading zones, blocks residential driveways, and keeps its trucks idling on the street for several hours in the morning.
“They don’t use parking lots, they park on the streets, and we don’t have any relief,”
said Eagle Street resident Todd Eaton at a Community Board 1 meeting on Tuesday.
When things get really busy at the Broadway Stages soundstage at West Street, trucks park on both sides of Eagle Street, obstructing the bike lane that leads to the Pulaski Bridge and making the road dangerous for drivers and cyclists, neighbors allege.
North Brooklynites say they aren’t entirely anti-Hollywood — they just want the Steven Spielberg-produced “Smash” to stop treating the partly residential block like trash.
“We are not here to shut down shows and we’re not against film production, but the staff of this show has been aggressive and disrespectful,” said Eaton, who claims a studio worker cursed at him when he asked the “Smash” staffer to move his truck.
But parking isn’t the only problem, according to Eagle Street property owner Alexandra Sokolowska, who says television crews have woken her up as early as 5 am idling outside her window.
“They make noise all day and they block residential buildings 24-seven,” said Sokolowska, who claims three of her tenants have moved out because of noise and air pollution caused by the studio.
Broadway Stages owner Tony Argento promised he would force crew members to park elsewhere and prevent them from leaving their trucks idling.
“That shouldn’t happen, we’ll put somebody out there,” said Argento. “I will personally come and move the vehicle myself.”
A location manager for the show said he is working with Argento to make neighbors as happy as he can, and promised the trucks are only left running when they are loading and unloading equipment in the morning and evening.
Some residents urged the “Smash” crew to park on West Street, which has no residential buildings on the block closest to the studio. But the crew says that they need to be close to the soundstage because they are there to load and unload equipment and they can’t stray far from a power source.
“Smash” is one of scores of shows, including “Blue Bloods,” “The Good Wife,” and “I Just Want My Pants Back,” that filmed at Broadway Stages since the studio opened in 1999.
The Broadway-inspired drama starring Debra Messing, Anjelica Huston, and Katharine McPhee, has plummeted in the ratings this month, dropping from 11.5 million to 6.5 million viewers in the past two weeks.
