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Noise complaints › Pasadena
How to file a noise complaint in Pasadena
For loud music, noisy neighbors and other noise disturbances, call the Pasadena Police Department's non-emergency line, (626) 744-4241, and 911 for an emergency. The City's Code Compliance "File a Complaint" page says "The Code Compliance Division does not inspect loud music or noisy neighbor complaints." and "If you…
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Documenting this? A dated log of when the noise started, when it stopped and how loud it got is what Pasadena acts on. Log noise levels for a complaint — free, runs in your browser, records no audio.
| Quiet hours | 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.; construction 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat., none Sun. |
|---|---|
| How it is enforced | Decibel limits for some sources, audibility for others |
| Emergencies | 911 |
| Ordinance | Pasadena Code of Ordinances |
Where to file in Pasadena
For loud music, noisy neighbors and other noise disturbances, call the Pasadena Police Department's non-emergency line, (626) 744-4241, and 911 for an emergency. The City's Code Compliance "File a Complaint" page says "The Code Compliance Division does not inspect loud music or noisy neighbor complaints." and "If you experience a noise disturbance please contact the Pasadena Police Department, non-emergency line 626-744-4241." The Police Department's contact page lists "Non-Emergency Response: (626) 744-4241" and "General Contact Number: (626) 744-4501" and says "Call 9-1-1 for Emergency Responses". For gas-powered leaf blowers, the City's ban page, under "For Questions or to Report Violations", says to call Code Compliance at (626) 744-8633; the Code Compliance complaint page adds that code compliance issues can be submitted online through the City Service Center, https://www.cityofpasadena.net/city-service-center/, or by phone at 626-744-7311, Monday through Friday 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The code itself gives enforcement of Chapter 9.37 to the public health department (9.37.060), and the chapter states no penalty of its own. Under the code, the manager of the environmental health division has primary responsibility for enforcing the noise chapter (9.36.180), but the Public Health Department's Environmental Health page, (626) 744-6004, lists complaints about sanitation, smoking, lead hazards and bed bugs and does not mention noise. Penalty: violating Chapter 9.36 is a public nuisance punishable as a misdemeanor, and the City may also bring a civil action to abate it (9.36.190); the chapter states no fine amount. When police must respond more than once within 12 hours to a party, gathering or event of three or more people at the same location, the person responsible is billed for the police services on the second and later responses (9.43.010, 9.43.020); when such repeat responses are needed more than two times in a calendar year at the same location, the police chief reports them to the city attorney, who mails the property owner a notice, and from ten days after the mailing the owner is liable for the cost of any police response to a party there, first or later, for one year (9.43.030). Sources: https://www.cityofpasadena.net/planning/code-compliance/file-a-complaint/, https://www.cityofpasadena.net/police/contact/, https://www.cityofpasadena.net/planning/gas-powered-leaf-blower-ban/ and https://www.cityofpasadena.net/public-health/environmental-health/.
From the city's official pages and code, verified 2026-10-30. Numbers and departments change; if a line does not answer, the city's main switchboard or 311 can redirect you.
Before you call
- Log it. Date, start and end time, what the noise was and where you heard it from. Three dated entries carry more weight than one angry call.
- Measure it if you can. Pasadena sets measured limits, so a reading near the limit is direct evidence. The free noise log runs in your browser, records nothing, and saves a dated report.
- Check the rule. Quiet hours in Pasadena: 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.; construction 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat., none Sun. The Pasadena noise ordinance page quotes the code verbatim, so you can cite the section.
- Try the source once. A neighbour, landlord or venue manager often fixes it faster than the city does, and telling them first strengthens a later complaint.
What happens after you file
Non-emergency noise reports are queued, not dispatched, so a first call rarely ends the noise that night. What it does is start a record against the address. Repeated reports, a dated log and a reading are what move a case from a warning to a citation. Where the city needs an officer to witness the noise, as most audibility rules require, file while it is happening rather than the next morning.
How loud is Pasadena in general? The Pasadena noise map shows the federal transportation-noise data for every neighbourhood, and the apartment quiet hours page compares every city's night rule.
Who do I call for a noise complaint in Pasadena?
For loud music, noisy neighbors and other noise disturbances, call the Pasadena Police Department's non-emergency line, (626) 744-4241, and 911 for an emergency.
What are the quiet hours in Pasadena?
10 p.m. to 7 a.m.; construction 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sat., none Sun. The full rule, quoted from the code, is on the Pasadena noise ordinance page.
Should I call 911 for noise in Pasadena?
Only if there is danger, a threat or a crime in progress. For ongoing noise use the non-emergency police line or the department named above; repeated calls build an official record tied to the address, which is what code enforcement acts on.
What evidence helps a noise complaint in Pasadena?
Pasadena uses both decibel limits and audibility rules, so keep a dated log and take readings when you can; which rule applies depends on the source of the noise.
This page is a plain-language guide to the reporting route, not legal advice. Ordinances and contact numbers get amended; check the linked official sources before relying on a specific provision.
