UCI Cancellation Angers Backers of Benefit Concert

Promoters of a UC Irvine rock concert that was to raise money for developmentally disabled people are infuriated by the university’s last-minute decision to cancel the Saturday show for security reasons.

Concert supporters plan to protest the decision from noon to 1:30 p.m. today in front of the UCI Administration Building.

O.C. Help Fest, a nine-hour, 15-act concert, was to be in Aldrich Park, but campus officials said sufficient security was unavailable.

“After a careful review of planning details and consultation with UCI Police officers who manage special events, it has been determined that UCI cannot provide the necessary support for O.C. Help Fest,” campus scheduling director Jeffrey T. Cole wrote in a Monday letter to promoters. “We regret the need to take this action, however, the safety of the attendees as well as the security of the campus must take priority in our decision.”

UCI Police Sgt. Eladio Acuna said the campus Police Department tried to find at least four officers to supervise the 1,000 to 2,000 estimated fans but could not. Also, he said, the sponsor’s estimate of the crowd size kept changing.

Concert organizers said they had been told that two officers would be sufficient but that they were willing to pay $40 an hour per officer to however many were deemed necessary.

“Everyone’s really in shock,” said Boyd Bradshaw, executive director of the Sutton Foundation of Santa Ana, the agency that would benefit from the concert. “People look forward to a big event like this. It’s traumatic.”

Money raised from the concert would have been used to buy an eight-passenger van to transport developmentally disabled residents who live in Irvine, Garden Grove and Fountain Valley group homes. It took five months to plan the show.

Bradshaw said security concerns would have been minimal, because none of the acts are the kind that attract rowdy audiences. Scheduled acts included Liquorfish, All Day Wire, Lit, Dial-7, Knockout, My Superhero and Burnin’ Groove.

The Sutton Foundation will refund the tickets to those who call (714) 569-1910.