Frustrated residents are seeing red over noise from sports teams using Parrs Park but a club says a reduction in playing hours would be crippling.

The Auckland Council is lodging a resource consent application in the next month which, if successful, would raise the noise level allowed to come from the Sunnyvale park.

An artificial turf was installed last year. The field upgrade cost $2.3 million including turf, floodlighting and roading and is used by soccer, cricket and Australian football teams.

The ground is in use until 9pm on weeknights, 7pm on Saturdays and 5pm on Sundays when the floodlights are automatically turned off.

Noise coming from the turf seven days a week has neighbour Maree Kennedy frustrated.

"All we really want is for the field to be closed two nights of the week and on Sundays. I don't think that's unreasonable. We have been living here for four and a half years and before the turf was put in we never had any problems with the sports teams," she says.

"I just want a Sunday morning where I can come into the lounge and have a coffee without having to turn on the TV to drown out the noise," she says.

"I'm going to be making a submission against the resource consent. It seems pretty unfair that they would just try to cover up the excess noise by pushing through another resource consent."

Oratia United Football chairman Peter Goodburn says Parrs Park is the club's home ground and if it lost Sunday use it would be seriously affected.

"I suppose if you're sitting out on your deck the noise could be a bit loud but it's a bit like people moving in next to a speedway and complaining about the sound of cars," he says.

"This is a facility that is there for the public and that was paid for with ratepayers money so it needs to be used to its full capacity.

"This field gives us the ability to reach out to young people and get them involved in sports and that's a big goal of ours because it's far better for them to be playing football than out causing trouble."

Council manager Mark Bowater says an investigation was done after residents complained, and noise levels are higher than expected.

"Play now happens over a longer period and complaints have been made.

"A noise specialist has been engaged to assess the noise effects of the artificial playing field and to develop options to address these effects," he says.

Public submissions can be lodged once the resource consent is submitted.

- © Fairfax NZ News