“I’m not opposed to the amphitheater. I think it’s great. I want it to succeed.” “But success should not mean that people living miles away from the amphitheater need to deal with listening to the concert inside their home.”
Tom Flickinger was one of nearly 30 Grand Rapids residents who spoke at the latest city commission meeting.
“But success should not mean that people living miles away from the amphitheater need to deal with listening to the concert inside their home.”
Many attendees said they support Acrisure Amphitheater but ask the city find ways to reduce excessive noise levels on concert nights.
During the venue’s planning stage in 2023, the city exempted the amphitheater from its noise ordinance between the hours of 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., but a Kent County judge ruled in August the venue was not exempt from the city code.
“And then something remarkable happened: all of a sudden, I stopped hearing the concert at my house. That’s why I’m here tonight. I feel like the existing limits worked.”
Mark Washington said the Grand Rapids-Kent County Convention/Arena Authority would revisit the issue before the next concert season.
“…and talk about some of their operational plans and responses to some of the feedback that we’ve heard here today, so we can certainly try to schedule that in a future briefing.”
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