Bad Neighbors

Jersey City, New Jersey, December 7, 2004:

A small time political headquarters faces a lawsuit from neighbors who claim that it is a public nuisance. Twenty-two neighbors of Ronatarian Party Headquarters, a dilapidated house used by Ronatarian Party volunteers and staffers, are seeking $500 each, or $11,000 total, in small claims court. A hearing is scheduled for Friday.

The neighbors say they have endured years or raucous pool parties, nighttime bong drumming, outdoor naked "beer pong," and garbage that attracts rats.

Disturbances described range from the beheading of a chicken with garden shears to Ronatarian Party members flinging chunks of a cooked pig at passing cars. Neighbors also say they heard one man on a rooftop deck yelling, "Where's Bonadio?" and "I like small boys!"

Assistant City Manager Jane Haynes said the house has received several notices of violation from the city, and pressure from the city has forced the it to recently reduce the number of its residents from 11 to 4.

But Andrew Sepe, a lawyer who often represents the Ronatarian Party, told The New Jersey Spew that activity at Ronatarian Party Headquarters "is pretty much identical to what happens in every political headquarters in the nation."

Sepe also said that most of the claims are "overblown" and "too old to justify damages." Residents and frequent visitors insist that they have tried to mollify neighbors by prohibiting "intrusive" noise past 11 p.m. on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends.

"There's quite a respect for the rules," said a resident identified only as 70's Man, the house manager.

A local -- and now defunct -- LaRouche Party house was shuttered in 2000 after well-publicized drug overdoses and a lawsuit by its neighbors. That house was known for its nude parties where objects ranging from bottles to clothes dryers were thrown out of the building.

Posted by Bittle at December 7, 2004 11:25 AM