The Sound-on-the-Sound music festival will be a multi-day event in September 2022 anticipated to attract roughly 35,000 concert-goers per day for high profile rock and R&B artists performing in Seaside Park.
The Parks Commission has approved licensing for the event. The next step is in the hands of the City Council which must approve the music festival contract.
The proposed event is a collaboration of Howard Saffan, brainchild of the newly opened Hartford Healthcare Amphitheater, concert promoter Live Nation and the founders of the decade-long New York City music festival Governor’s Ball, Jordan Wolowitz and Tom Russell.
Promoters are eyeing weekends of September 17-18 and September 24-25 for musical showcases.
This proposed music festival is a departure from Gathering of the Vibes that had occupied the park last in 2015 when overnight camping was allowed. Patrons for this festival will come into Seaside Park and leave on the same night.
See below, key parts of the contract as well as a description of the music festival. The licensee is responsible for all public safety and clean-up costs. The city is guaranteed $100,000 but the take is projected to be more than double that based on receiving five percent of gross ticket sales.
Traffic control is ridiculous, there are only 4 streets that go into Seaside Park, who will be responsible for the maintenance of the wear and tear of those neighborhood streets? As a resident of Seaside Village homes events like this one has big impact on us, like drive-through, walk through traffic in fact when Vibe event was here a robbery was committed at the Vibe event the person who was involed ran into Seaside Village and was running through our backyards trying to hide and we had the police running into are backyards including Kaye Rivera’s and my backyard and we didn’t know what as going on. The security force willhave no control of the sale of drugs inside of Seaside Park and the use of drugs.
Bull shot!
Pure and utter bull shit!
There must be a minimum number of city police officials on duty in the park for the entire time of the festival.
The number of police officers can be increased at the sole discretion of the Chief of Police or his designee.
The concert promoters must post a performance bond of double their “estimated” before any activity takes place and they will be released once they have satisfactorily completed cleanup satisfaction subject to a complete inspection and sign off by the Parks Commission or their designee and the Director of Public Facilities or his designee.
This is just to begin with.
We were taken by the previous promoters and it appears NOTHING was learned from the past.
And it’s the same clowns, Mayor Ganim and his City Attorneys Office running the same circus.
Ron
Why don’t you have the city put up some type of permanent fencing?
Might as well go for the whole enchilada while the getting good.
How are the streets down in Seaside Village?
If they need paving put it on the demand list.
You could get more done right now then that useless alderman.
Ron
Go for it!
Need capital improvements at Seaside Village, now is the time to ask OR should I say demand them.
This will have a steady stream of money coming in over 10 years.
Don’t let the city say it’s not guaranteed.
As far as you are concerned it’s money in the bank.
Money for new roofs? Go for it.
Money for new windows? Why not.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Bob, you are fired about this, Joe Gamin/Howard Saffan 🙂
What about the closing/rebuilding of Marina Village. Does anyone think that will have an impact on Comrade Ron’s Seaside Village? Is anyone looking at Joe and his administration? SJ
I am out of here. 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTX5xjY3KDU&t=62s
IF we are going to start renting out Seaside park for music festivals,why doesn’t this go out to bid??. I’m sure other promoters might want to throw their hat in the ring.Why do Saffan and Live Nation have exclusive rights?.
On a related note,how the hell can we allow 35,000 festival goers to come into our city,camp out for a few days, and expect our depleted police force to handle that AND protect the other parts of the city??.. Simply put,Bridgeport cannot handle 35,000 people, we are not set up for something like this…
Harvey, there is no camping. But, with 35,000 people expecting to come through, you better hope there is adequate parking. There is no way nearly enough parking by/at the park. Even so, you will have some serious traffic issues. Maybe, give ticket holders designated parking tickets with RIFD wristbands. To make the transition go smoothly at the park. Use HCC parking garage for those communicating South on 95, the Harbor Yard garage for those community North, and Fairfield Garage for the coming from route 8. Easy off, Easy on. opens up the rest local parking by the park for those who know the Port.
If Saffan has a grand idea to make the Port a tourist/entertainment destination, parking is a must. Actually when all the hype about what was going to be developed for the ballpark across the street. I thought they were going to build a larger-scale parking garage/transportation hub where Brewport is now. Easy on easy off from 95, Rt8, the ferry, A lot surrounded, completely by the highway.
I guess it all depends on what they have in mind. JS
P.S You can’t put someone’s Idea out to bid? While I think what you are Bob are alluding to. It is not something that goes out to bid. In fact, it would be corrupt to do so, undercutting a man’s idea to give it to another.
Think about it.
Ban I am out of here. 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0oUInmlhgA
RT..A simple google search tells us that any service or goods worth more than $25,000,must go out to bid.
“”Competitive bidding” or “competitive bid” means the city’s procedure for obtaining goods or general services anticipated to be in excess of twenty five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) in which sealed bids are submitted in response to solicitation documents. This process does not permit any negotiation with the apparent winning bidder after the receipt and opening of bids. Competitive bidding may be accomplished as a result of public advertisement or other electronic public notice methods adopted as official policy by the BPP”
http://bridgeport-ct.elaws.us/code/coor_title3_ch3.08_sec3.08.070
And it’s not “under cutting ” Saffans idea,what if ,say,Coleman brothers amusement company approached the city about having the Midway come back to Seaside Park this July,just because Coleman amusements approached the city with this idea doesn’t mean they automatically get the contract to run it,it would have to go out for bid..This is the same thing IMO..
It’s called bid-rigging and it happens in Bridgeport all the time.
The politicians win.
The contractors win.
The only who loses is the taxpayers.
Oh well, Only In Bridgeport.
It is just as corrupt. This bidding process is a mechanism to stop corruption, in some sort. However just because there is a lower bidder doesn’t make it better. I’ve seen some people give low bidding that things and did some crappy work. Most people like to get paid for their value.
At any rate, you and Bob seem to want to use the bidding process in a corrupt way. That is obvious. Especially, Bob, he’s on fire with anything to do with Saffan/Ganim. 🙂
That being said, To your example, the timing for Coleman Brothers wanting to have their Midway in July would be they see an opportunity because of the current celebration/fireworks already taking place in the city. They would be trying to get in on the action or the city may want to increase the celebration with a carnival. Either way, the way I see it, any promoters can approach the city and ask to hold a concert in the park on a different date. It’s an open invitation. So in this case bidding proceed would be nothing more the on dates, Sept 17, 18, 24, 25 specifically.
In my mind, they are apples and oranges.
Anyway. Time will tell if he puts on a successful show or not.
Use parking lot of the amphitheater then shuttle? How about for out of towners, their basically only one hotel in the largest populated city so the surrounding cities get to make the hotel revenue. Park on the baseball fields?
You shouldn’t put the cart before the horse. Let’s start with existing local establishments.
Ever since Steve Wynn the owner of the Mirage and other hotels in Las Vegas made his presentation at the Bridgeport Jai Alai about bringing a casinos to (Bridgeport’s golden goose to solve all of their problems). Wynn stated that the casino would bring in 20,000 peolpe a day to Bridgeort but Bridgeport had no plan for all of those cars and they have no plan today for parking. Satellite parking lots with shuttle bus service with interval times runing maybe ever 15 mintues going back and forth. Security and parking will be a horror story, it will a open market for drug dealers.
I don’t see the need for this to be a ten year contract. I also think that the city council should not be rushed into approving this contract until it is thoroughly looked at, understood and accepted by the council. There are many issues to consider with an event of this nature, like parking, traffic, use and cost of the police, etc. As far as, should this contract be put out to bid, I don’t think so. If the City of Bridgeport is going to make money on this thing and it promotes and benefits the city and the city’s businesses, it’s more like an investment than a capital expenditure. Plus, the unique aspect of the concert does not lend itself to competing with other concert shows because they are often very different in nature and will have different costs and incomes. They will also probably not be competing for the exact same dates on the calendar. If at some point, the city has competing interests for similar dates, then maybe a bid process could be considered. Joe, don’t rush this thing through like so many other rubber stamp council’s you’ve presided over. The people of Bridgeport deserve better than that. Let’s take our time an get this thing right.
According to ordinance,something like this must be put out to bid.It sets a precedent in the future if not. It also lends itself to corruption,and especially with Joe in charge,THAT is an open door that has to be watched closely..
Why not ask the concert promoter to provide the city with a pro forma income statement?
Then compare the pro forma to actual. See how close or far apart they really are.
If they are close then fine.
But if they are far apart then have language if the contract that guarantees the city share in the extra profit.
I’m not being greedy just realistic.
Open the books. It’s in the public interest.
With transportation, traffic flow, and peripheral event operations being the most challenging aspect of a festival, a specialized transportation operations firm will be an essential part of the festival management team, and will be interfacing regularly with local agencies and venue partners. Shuttles will be provided to/from the Bridgeport Metro North station, the Amphitheater lots as well as the Ferry.
Howard Saffan’s plan for security and traffic control is listed #13 Responsibilites for Event Security and Trafic Control has very little in details, this plan is really ridiculous, remember we are talking about 35,000 people over a two days.