Rose Garden Resident
News
Outdoor Dew Action concert heard throughout the Rose Garden area
By Mary Gottschalk
The Roots may have won a Grammy for their hip-hop music, but their Sept. 8 concert in the HP Pavilion parking lot hit a sour note with some nearby residents.
The 9 to 11 p.m. concert was held in conjunction with the Dew Action Sports Tour, which took place Sept. 7-10 inside the Pavilion as well as in the parking lot. The event attracted a crowd of more than 49,000 over the four days to watch motorcross and BMX bike events, as well as skateboarding.
The concert, included in the one-day $15 admission cost, was heard in the Shasta Hanchett Park, St. Leo's and Garden Alameda neighborhoods.
"The noise was definitely excessive, loud enough be clearly audible inside my house three-quarters of a mile from the concert," says Marc Morris.
"I don't advocate banning the event, but the city should figure out some noise relief measures before allowing it or similar events in the future."
Garden Alameda resident Kay Gutknecht went so far as to leave town for the weekend, she says, because she remembered the noise from the Dew Tour in 2005.
Tessa Woodmansee, a Stockton Avenue resident, says she also could hear it inside her home.
Calling 311 to complain shortly after it started, Woodmansee says the dispatcher told her the city does not enforce the noise ordinance and that the concert would be over at 11 p.m.
San Jose police spokeswoman Gina Tepoorten says calls to 311 are not logged, but any that came in were referred to the beat officers on duty that night.
Eleven complaints were registered with District 6 City Councilman Ken Yeager's office.
Tricia Kerkhof, events coordinator for the Cultural Affairs office, says as of Sept. 11, it had logged eight complaint calls about the concert.
Steven Kirsner, director of booking and events at HP Pavilion, says his office logged "about 10" complaints.
There were two concerts at the 2005 event, and Kirsner says a decision to limit them to just one concert for 2006 was made in part "to mitigate sound issues."
Kerkhof says the Dew Tour is unique, and activities of this sort aren't common at the arena.
While some neighbors were unhappy, there were others who shrugged it off.
Kelly Snider, a Garden Alameda resident, says, "We heard the concert, and we interpreted it as 'joyful noise.'"
Joe Bentley, president of the Shasta Hanchett Park Neighborhood Association, says he is meeting with the Arena Authority in the coming weeks to set up "a better communication channel" to avoid future problems.
Erin Gaughan, spokeswoman for the Dew Tour, says attendance was up 12 percent from 2005, and the tour is expected to return in 2007.
