London concerts: Longer, but not louder nights could be in the cards

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Longer – and thirst-quenchingly wetter – but definitely not louder.

Londoners have told city hall what they want from the rules for outdoor festivals and concerts, and a tweak moving on them goes to politicians Monday with the public able to weigh in.

Free water, a new $2,000 penalty for exceeding the existing noise limit and allowing select events, including concerts, to run an extra hour, until midnight, are among the changes being studied by city staff to a bylaw governing the outdoor events, based on public feedback, in a report to a council committee.

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Nope, there’s no clamour to let the music play louder.

Londoners are apparently content with the existing maximum noise level – at 90 decibels, it’s about as loud as a lawn mower – but some, it turns out, worry it might be a tad too low.

But if you’re a fan of London’s festival season, which peaks in July, often in brutally hot weather, there’s a lot to like in the bylaw’s re-do, starting with a proposed extra hour shoe-horned in for events that run on Fridays and Saturdays at three key places – Harris and Victoria parks, and the pedestrian-friendly stretch of Dundas Street known as Dundas Place.

Would an extra hour change things much?

We’d have to wait to see, but the early word from the organizer of the big summer rock festival in Harris Park says it might come in handy – not so much for added playing time, but making that up when time is lost.

“We are quite happy being finished at 11 o’clock and (the event) driving all of those fans back into the bars, restaurants, hotels,” said Brad Jones of Jones Entertainment Group that puts on the Rock the Park concert series in July.

On the other, hand, said Jones, an extra one-hour cushion might be helpful if performances are delayed by bad weather.

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The city asked Londoners what changes should be made to the bylaw, and 180 replied. Feedback on the penalty for too-loud concerts varied, with some saying jacking it up would discourage entertainment but others saying larger events can easily absorb the hit.

The changes proposed would bring in a $2,000 fine for playing too loud, up from an existing system in which scofflaws lose a $500 security deposit if they run afoul of the noise limit.

Jones said he isn’t the sweating the proposed new fine, noting Rock the Park has only been penalized “three or four” times for exceeding maximum allowable noise levels. The festival tries to run at a constant level at or near the maximum now, he added.

Neither the existing bylaw, nor its proposed changes, would require London to distribute free water at events. But city hall says it’s heard loud and clear that Londoners want access to free water, or the ability to bring their own to events, some of which are held during what can be sweltering weather.

Some festival venues, such as Victoria Park, are equipped with drinking fountains and the city has made mobile fountains and bottle-filling stations available at events such as the annual Western Fair. The report going to council’s community and protective services committee Monday lists access to free water among the areas of the bylaw that staff want to update.

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“Special events are critical to supporting a culturally, socially and economically vibrant city,” the report says. “They raise the city’s profile, support arts and culture and are significant drivers of tourism, economic development and community development.”

The existing bylaw limits to four days the length of festivals held in Harris Park, something Jones said he wouldn’t mind be changed to allow a fifth day, if needed, without having to go to city council for special permission. No change is proposed for a tweaked bylaw.

Noise from outdoor concerts and festivals can be a touchy issue for neighbourhoods nearby, as the politicians were reminded in April when Rock the Park organizers sought a fifth day for this past summer’s concert lineup.

“There are reasons why we have (length) limitations in effect,” Ward 6 Coun. Trosow said at the time. “I hear too many complaints. I hear complaints in my own neighbourhood . . . People should not have to deal with that for five nights.”

After city staff receive feedback from politicians and the public Monday, they’ll bring back a final version of the updated bylaw Dec. 2. The new rules are expected to take effect early next year.

jmoulton@postmedia.com

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