COSTA MESA : Music to Make Low-Key Comeback at Fairgrounds

Let the music begin, but on a much softer note, please.

The Spectacor Management Group, which manages the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum and the Long Beach Convention Center, has been given the go-ahead to operate Pacific Amphitheatre at the Orange County Fairgrounds.

The Orange County Fair Board of Directors unanimously approved a three-year contract last week at its board meeting. The decision ends months of no music after the fairgrounds bought back the facility from the Nederlander Organization, which had been booking loud bands and causing complaints among residents.

Although a four-member panel recommended as long ago as the beginning of October that SMG manage the 8,500-seat facility, the board’s vote was delayed after Irvine Meadows Partners, one of five companies competing for the position, filed a protest on Oct. 19, claiming it had been the lowest responsible bidder.

But on Nov. 9, the company withdrew its complaint, citing no particular reasons, and the board voted on the matter the next day, according to the fairgrounds press office.