screen shot April 12 council meeting

#safepeacefulvillage

Some Warkworth residents “respectfully provide constructive feedback”

“It is a confined space so we have to try to work together and come up with something that works for everybody.” Mayor Crate

Article by John Campbell

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Warkworth - Villagers upset with the Warkworth Music Fest disrupting their lives once a year are asking for changes to be made to the event, starting with not making it so LOUD.

That was one of the recommendations “Some Warkworth Village Residents” put forward in an email Trent Hills council recently received.

The residents, whose names were not included in the email from [email protected], said the festival held at the Warkworth Fairgrounds “has been disturbing some neighbours with its very prolonged loud music, noise and vibrations” since its debut in 2017.

They also complained about “other disruptions, suitability issues and safety concerns regarding a potentially large amount of alcohol and drug use in an unsecured location within a small, historic, high-density residential” community.
But they are “especially concerned” that the “precedent” set by the festival could open the door to “multiple, loud, long, similar party events” being held at the fairgrounds each year.

“We believe that the Fairgrounds, with its location in the heart of downtown and insufficient land buffering in all directions is, in general, a very unsuitable location for prolonged, large, loud party/music festivals and/or large, overnight noisy
trailer-park uses.”

The residents said a “rural location would be much more consistent” with where other music festivals are held in Ontario, at sites that have more land buffers, and with much fewer people living nearby.

The residents initially presented their concerns to the Percy Agricultural Society in early March. They also suggested how the event could be improved, as they are “extremely grateful to Percy Agricultural Society for its immense, positive contributions to our community for over 170 years,” which have included the fairgrounds and the arena, as well as the fall fair and other events.

“We support and appreciate fundraising activities and social events that enhance our community,” the residents stated, and, living so close to the fairgrounds, “we are accustomed to reasonable noise emanating from events (which) is not usually problematic,” because the sounds of the fall fair, with its tractor pulls and other activities, “are an essential part of our local heritage and economy.”

But the festival is another matter, and to reduce its level of disruption the residents asked that organizers:
— provide at least two months’ notice of the event taking place “to allow property owners to reschedule their own private gatherings and (give them) ample time to make reservations to vacate their homes”;
— “significantly” reduce “music/singing volumes and bass levels, especially for the louder, heavier-bass
nightly rock bands”;
— confine all festival activities to the fairgrounds with staff
and/or security being “visible” at both entrances;
— begin making plans to relocate the festival “to a more suitable location well in advance” of the festival “outgrowing” the fairgrounds, “which appears could occur soon.”

The residents said the festival’s return last year after a two-year absence owing to the pandemic “was a sudden, prolonged, booming shock to some community members who had not received any prior notice or consultation.”
Over the weekend it was held, several vehicles drove in and out of the fairground “at very high speeds,” the bands’ loud performances “highly distressed pets” in the village, and “Disturbances were excessive, limiting sleep, work and (the) quiet enjoyment of homes and yards.”

The site was scarred by tire ruts, and dozens of garbage bags piled up beside the dumpster after it became full, creating the potential for “vermin attractors.”

The residents approached council after the agricultural society’s board of directors informed them their concerns were “a permit issue and should be addressed through other avenues. Should a permit be issued, we will re-visit your letter,” the society replied.

There was a brief discussion when the matter came before council April 12.
CAO Lynn Phillips said the application process for special event permits has been “revamped.” Applications are circulated among various municipal departments and it’s only after staff are “satisfied (they have) met all requirements” that they are brought to council for approval.
“Definitely there (are) some issues here that need to be addressed,” Councillor Cathy Redden observed.
Council voted that the neighbours’ submission be “considered in conjunction” with the organizers’ application for a special permit.

“We’ll take it up with the organizers and see if … there’s a way to answer some of the concerns, and then they can move forward,” Mayor Bob Crate said in an interview. It’s “a work in progress.”

The event, scheduled for July 21-24, is being promoted on the festival’s website, warkworthmusicfest.ca. “Get ready to rock!” it says. Eleven bands are scheduled to perform.

“It’s what happens, they get ahead of it (the process),” said Crate, who reiterated the municipality will talk to both sides to arrive at a compromise. “It is a confined space so we have to try to work together and come up with something that works for everybody.”

The mayor said that, as with any permit, the municipality can attach conditions.

The festival is held “to help the community so you don’t want to see something like that end,” he said. Everybody has to feel “safe,” he said, but not everyone “will be completely happy” with whatever “solution” is decided upon.

It’s not the first time residents have complained to council about the festival. Four of them wrote letters in 2018 saying the noise level was “excessive and very disruptive.”

Organizers said then they would try to find a solution:
https://trenthillsnow.com/2018/06/25/warkworth-music-fest-noise-level-concerns-discussed-at-trent-hills-council-meeting/