Jay Z, Mayor Eric Garcetti expected to announce music festival
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and rapper Jay Z are scheduled to appear outside City Hall on Wednesday for what is expected to be an announcement on a two-day music festival for Labor Day weekend in Grand Park.
The Budweiser Made in America, which advertises itself as being “curated by Jay Z,” could draw as many as 50,000 people to the heart of downtown, raising red flags for Councilman Jose Huizar, who warned that street closures and beer sales could create “a nightmare.”
Last month, he introduced a council motion saying that no permits should be provided for the event until questions are answered about its impact on the surrounding neighborhood.
The festival, which is being produced by Live Nation, is expected to have multiple stages and beer gardens.
“We have questions over whether that is the best use for Grand Park, the so-called ‘people’s park,’” Huizar spokesman, Rick Coca, said in an email. “If it is, what is the public -- that is the city and downtown Los Angeles community -- getting in return?”
Grand Park has grown increasingly popular as a venue since it opened in 2012. A Fourth of July fireworks event last year drew 12,000 people. Months later, a New Year’s Eve party drew twice as many visitors and was hailed by organizers as a huge success.
Garcetti spokesman Yusef Robb said the mayor’s office invited Huizar to the event and will continue talking to him about ways to address the festival’s impact on its neighbors.
“We want to work together with the council office to make sure this concert is positive for concert-goers and residents alike,” Robb said. “There is plenty of time to work all these issues out, and we’re going to.”
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Twitter: @davidzahniser
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