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"Real Brooklynites" Demand Fewer Williamsburg Waterfront Concerts
By
Jen Carlson
Published May 4, 2011
Modified May 4, 2011
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By
Jen Carlson
Published May 4, 2011
Modified May 4, 2011
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Photo by Jen Carlson/Gothamist
Here we go again! Community Board 1 (more like Complaining Board 1, eh?) is trying to strong arm the Open Space Alliance into cutting back on the number of outdoor concerts they're holding on Williamsburg's waterfront this summer. Last night the board's parks committee voted to limit the number of large-scale concerts at East River State Park, by cancelling five shows and reducing capacity from 6,500 to 5,000 people. That's a nice wish list, but it ain't happenin'.
As we learned from the last time around, the Community Board can vote on whatever they like, and hope that local politicians will hear them out (though up in Albany, they actually asked us "what's a community board?"). In this case the State Parks Department has already confirmed that they have a firm contract with the OSA for the summer, allowing them to have 15 shows. OSA's director Stephanie Thayer told the Brooklyn Paper this week, "I can’t comply with this.” This being the demands the Community Board has delivered, and that's because it wouldn't make sense monetarily to limit attendance.
So let's just try to be civil, everyone, and try not to act like animals—because local Bryan Somerville told the paper he has to "act like a security guard on my stoop so that people won’t urinate outside my house." And a lifer of the neighborhood says, “Whose idea was it to turn a residential neighborhood into a concert venue? We had no say about it. We are real Brooklyn and we’re sick and tired of being abused by people here.”
The next Community Board 1 meeting will take place May 12th (211 Ainslie Street, Williamsburg), if you want to get in on the action. Though we recommend saving your energy for Sonic Youth at the waterfront this summer!
Tagged
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cb1
concerts
osa
Real Brooklyn
williamsburg
williamsburg waterfront
Jen Carlson
Jen Carlson is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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