City: Expect Better “Made in America” Experience This Year
Less than three weeks before the second “Made In America” concert on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, promoters and the city have yet to sign a contract — and residents near the venue are worried about repeats of last year’s headaches.
Those lessons include better ways to deal with issues like noise and parking headaches that drove residents near the Parkway up the wall last year — at least those residents who didn’t flee town. David Searles, President of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, says one unexpected noise problem were soundchecks at sunrise.
Another issue facing residents near the Parkway during the set-up for Made in America were parking restrictions. David Searles says the no-parking started many days in advance.
Officials say those issues are being examined and addressed. In April, PhillyMag’s Dan McQuade offered a list of suggestions to make the “Made in America” concert experience more pleasant. Topping his list? Be nicer to the neighbors.
This is Philadelphia. People don’t like change, or new things. (Philadelphia is where people got angry at the removal of a racial slur from a cheesesteak shop’s name.) Last year, the concert was allegedly going to be hidden behind sound-proof walls; it didn’t work.
Look, it’d be nicer if this thing were free. But let’s work in the framework of the corporate Budweiser music fest: If they’re going to fence it off, why not actually figure out a way to make neighbors not complain complain less? Is this really any different than the 4th of July concert and fireworks, other than that there are way fewer people attending?
Fields are going to be damaged during this event with tens of thousands of people trampling over them. Can most of the staging be done on the asphalt of the Parkway rather than grass?
