Wheeler v. Lebanon Valley Auto Racing Corp

In Wheeler v. Lebanon Valley Auto Racing Corp., 303 A.D.2d 791 (3d Dept. 2003), a case involving a private plaintiff alleging a public nuisance by reason of noise and other disturbances of the peace surrounding a racetrack, it was held that "the relevant community consists of those persons residing within a 2-mile radius of the Speedway," and that, "regardless of location, all persons in the affected community would be 'similarly impacted' by exposure to 'unacceptable' noise levels during the Speedway's activities." (Id., 303 A.D.2d at 793.) The court held that, "for the Speedway's activities to be privately actionable as a public nuisance, it was incumbent on plaintiffs to show an injury other than the annoyance of loud noises[,]" precisely because annoyance from loud noises was the only damage claimed by the plaintiffs in question and the only proved effect on plaintiffs' properties by reason of the public nuisance. (Id., 303 A.D.2d at 793.)