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Neighbors say Holiday Park concerts and alcohol strain neighborhood; board approves permit despite objections
Summary
Nearby residents told the parks board Holiday Park is a nature park unsuited to repeated concerts and alcohol, citing parking, pedestrian safety and loss of park use; residents asked the board to restrict or relocate events but the board approved the permit 3–2.
Neighbors and a resident spokesman told the parks board that Holiday Park’s character as a nature park is being eroded by repeated concerts and that allowing liquor sales would worsen noise, illegal parking and safety risks.
Phil Whistler, who said he lives across the street from Holiday Park and is a member of Holiday Park Nature Advocates, urged the board to deny or reconsider permitting for Holiday Park events. "There's just no way to view them in Holiday Park without doing an unreasonable amount of damage to the neighborhood," Whistler said, listing illegal parking, lack of traffic control and pedestrian safety hazards. Howard Hoffman, speaking for neighbors, added that concerts primarily benefit the promoter and cited figures he said show limited financial return to the park and large parking-related revenue for promoters. "The Holiday family gave Holiday Park to the city...not as a concert venue," Hoffman said.
Board member Andre Denman echoed concerns about park purpose and enforceability, saying he is "struggling with should liquor be, in a public park." The board nevertheless voted to approve the alcohol permits for the named events. The department and organizers emphasized fencing, security checkpoints and permitting requirements as mitigation measures.
