At a recent Community Board 1 meeting, some residents complained about the noisy concerts at the East River State Park in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and the growing number of bars and restaurants and the board responded by passing a resolution recommending the summer concert series be banned, according to an article by Michael Preston in yesterday's edition of The New York Daily News.
"Because it's too late to do so this summer, the board recommended the ban take effect in summer 2012," the article said, adding that "the good times could stop flowing in hipster Williamsburg if some local residents and officials have their way."
In response to complaints about rowdy partiers and trashed streets, Community Board 1 recommended that a series of popular summer concerts in East River Park be cancelled and "some community board members also pressed for a ban on new liquor licenses for neighborhood bars and restaurants," the article continued.
"Bars? Forget about it," said Eddie Thompson, 72, a longtime neighborhood resident. "There are so many of them. It's busy and there's people everywhere all the time. It's loud out here. All these new condos and stuff going up . . . there's all these new people moving in. We're like the UN out here. If you look for any type of person, we have it here. The neighborhood's a lot different than it used to be."
The article noted that the popular concert series, which runs between June and September and is about to enter its fourth year, has featured rock music and large crowds in the state park along the water.
State Parks Department spokesman Ben Keith said the agency hadn't "heard any complaints about sound . . . The concerts are subject to city noise laws, but that's not something we've been hearing about."
Stephanie Thayer, executive director of the Open Space Alliance, which puts on the concerts, told The News that her group would work with the board to resolve any issues. To widen the appeal of the shows, she continued, the alliance diversified this year's lineup, and a child-friendly concert and a symphony event are planned along with the rock shows. Additionally, no weekend shows will take place in July or August, to give residents greater freedom to use the park.
John Wiseman, of Whiskey Brooklyn, believes the concerts have been a good thing. "They've been a creative flashpoint for the neighborhood and for the city," he said in the article, adding that trying to stop the expansion of the neighborhood bar scene could be counterproductive. "There is a demand there and people want it," he continued, and "Saying there's too many people around and too much business going on isn't a bad thing; that's a good thing."
"Because it's too late to do so this summer, the board recommended the ban take effect in summer 2012," the article said, adding that "the good times could stop flowing in hipster Williamsburg if some local residents and officials have their way."
In response to complaints about rowdy partiers and trashed streets, Community Board 1 recommended that a series of popular summer concerts in East River Park be cancelled and "some community board members also pressed for a ban on new liquor licenses for neighborhood bars and restaurants," the article continued.
"Bars? Forget about it," said Eddie Thompson, 72, a longtime neighborhood resident. "There are so many of them. It's busy and there's people everywhere all the time. It's loud out here. All these new condos and stuff going up . . . there's all these new people moving in. We're like the UN out here. If you look for any type of person, we have it here. The neighborhood's a lot different than it used to be."
The article noted that the popular concert series, which runs between June and September and is about to enter its fourth year, has featured rock music and large crowds in the state park along the water.
State Parks Department spokesman Ben Keith said the agency hadn't "heard any complaints about sound . . . The concerts are subject to city noise laws, but that's not something we've been hearing about."
Stephanie Thayer, executive director of the Open Space Alliance, which puts on the concerts, told The News that her group would work with the board to resolve any issues. To widen the appeal of the shows, she continued, the alliance diversified this year's lineup, and a child-friendly concert and a symphony event are planned along with the rock shows. Additionally, no weekend shows will take place in July or August, to give residents greater freedom to use the park.
John Wiseman, of Whiskey Brooklyn, believes the concerts have been a good thing. "They've been a creative flashpoint for the neighborhood and for the city," he said in the article, adding that trying to stop the expansion of the neighborhood bar scene could be counterproductive. "There is a demand there and people want it," he continued, and "Saying there's too many people around and too much business going on isn't a bad thing; that's a good thing."
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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