JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Music lovers like to see live concerts at Metro Park. The riverfront venue provides an atmosphere no other place in Jacksonville offers.
"Coming to concerts here just gives everybody an opportunity to enjoy the weather," said Justin Brown who attended a concert at Metro Park on Monday. "Get an opportunity to come out here and enjoy friends."
But one person's entertainment is another person's nuisance. Right across the river, neighbors in St. Nicholas and South Shores are complaining of window-rattling noise. They've asked their city councilman, Don Redman, to do something about it.
"This is something that we've just really experienced in the last few years, and it really bothers people," said Redman.
He's proposing legislation to ban loud concerts at the park, but he says he's willing to meet somewhere in the middle. "We are negotiating with the city, with the promoters, and the community hopefully to find something where we can have somewhat loud music, but not to the extreme that it is now."
Redman doesn't deny concerts are a big money-maker for the city. Event planners tell Action News the "Welcome to Rockville" festival alone brought in about $6 million last year.
"You have to have more events out here to get people to come out," said concert-goer Andrea Bridges. "Otherwise we're not really gonna know our city. How are we gonna be one together, if we're never doing anything together."
The legislation has its first reading before the City Council at Tuesday night's meeting at City Hall. The floor will be open to public comment. A final vote isn't expected for several weeks.
There is an
online petition going around where people can sign to block plans for new legislation on noise.
