Riot Fest still plans to host their three-day rock music festival despite pushback from community members.
As the battle between the neighborhood and Riot Fest representatives continues at heated community meetings, talks of money and respect for residents become the backbone of the discussion.
Riot Fest Discussions
At a community meeting held on Thursday, April 6 a representative for Riot Fest said that the annual festival generates around $14 million for the Chicago Parks District. It is unconfirmed, however, how much of that actually goes toward Douglas Park. With over 600 parks in Cook County, the revenue may not go to Douglas Park proportional to the harm to the park itself and the community.
Pricing and payment are difficult issues for Riot Fest and other music festivals that use Chicago Parks as their venues. This is due to the fact that the city can put a price on hosting an event, but it is difficult to put a price on the harm to the communities surrounding the park.
The Price Tag on Douglas Park
The cost of hosting any event of over 10 thousand people in a Chicago Park is based on a formula of the number of guests and which “price cluster” a park was in. The formula is the square footage taken up multiplied by two cents and the number of days the event uses the park (including setup and takedown). All of this is added to the number of expected attendees multiplied by the days the event takes place.
Finally, this number is multiplied by the park’s “price cluster” number. The price cluster is pricing based on the desirability/difficulty of hosting an event in the park. For example, areas like Lincoln and Grant Park are in cluster three, the most expensive. Douglas Park is in cluster two. This means that renting out Douglas Park is less expensive than renting out a more “desirable” park.
The Price to the Neighborhood
Humboldt Park, where Riot Fest took place until 2015, is a cluster two park as well. This means Riot Fest has never had to pay the maximum amount of money to host an event in the parks. Unfortunately, the harm to the community is much more quantifiable than the harm to, for example, the Loop during Lollapalooza.
Riot Fest was kicked out of Humboldt Park after backlash from an estimated $182,000 in damages in 2014. Riot Fest, or any festival that causes damage to parks, is responsible for paying for damages. There is no retribution to the communities for the damages to the neighborhood and well-being of the residents, unfortunately.
An example of a well-being issue, community members have with Riot Fest is that it forces after-school sports that use the soccer fields to relocate for weeks. Riot Fest is not under any obligation to supplement the relocation or travel expenses of children, families, and coaches. Although it is the fault of Riot Fest that sports need to be relocated. The cost and hardship, thrust onto residents by Riot Fest, separate from the actual festival are a major reason people dislike having music festivals in communities such as North Lawndale.
Summer Smash and Heatwave Move
Many music festivals have been in Douglas Park throughout the years. Nonetheless, Riot Fest is the only one that has stayed despite community pushback.
Heatwave, a music festival that made its debut last year, has moved to Northerly Island on the Near South Side. This is a cluster three park, meaning they pay more for the permit. Despite the price, due to its location, the effect on the community is minimized.
Summer Smash, the rap music festival by Lyrical Lemonade, has moved to the nearby suburb of Bridgeport. This move comes after pushback from community members for years.
Riot Fest for years has come to the West Side and paid what the city has asked of them. They have also tried to offer benefits to community members. These benefits include free tickets, temporary jobs working at the festival, and beautification efforts at and around the park.
Still, the community worries that Riot Fest cannot make up for what cannot be given a price. Those allowed access to the park in one’s neighborhood, a lack of chaos in the community, and a park unmarred by an event that brings tens of thousands into North Lawndale.
Written by Caroline Buehler
Sources:
Block Club Chicago: Riot Fest Meeting Devolves Into Chaos As Hundreds Of Douglass Park Neighbors Make Their Voices Heard by Trey Arline
Block Club Chicago: As Riot Fest Works To Win Over West Siders, North Lawndale Residents Tell Parks Officials They Want It Gone by Trey Arline
ChicagoParksDistrict.com
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Chicago Man’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Caroline Buehler
