Bayfront concert series, Rockin' on the Bay, continues after council vote
City Council voted on Wednesday to continue the music event on Saturdays
NAPLES, Fla.- It's the concert series that is breathing new life into Naples, but "Rockin' on the Bay" maybe on borrowed time.
City council voting to keep the concert series alive at Wednesday's city council meeting.
Carole Hall lives part-time in one of the condos in the Bayfront Plaza. She welcomes the occasional noise.
"Every retirement community needs more energy. It's all part of staying young," said Hall.
Neighbors like Carole and business owners are pleading with city council to let "Rockin' on the Bay" continue. Supporters say it gives new life to the plaza and benefits businesses. The concert series started 2 weeks ago and brought out thousands last Saturday.
"In order to have businesses there has to be foot traffic, in order to have foot traffic you have to have events to get people to the Bayfront," said Mike Randall/McQuaid Marketing.
The city has received phone calls and emails from people upset over the event. Opponents say there's loud music, parking troubles and unsupervised kids.
Mayor John Sorey questioned if the plaza could handle such a loud crowd and other council members wondered why the marketing company which puts on the event never got the correct permit.
"It was never reviewed by city council as a special event and that's what it is. My concern is it's just too frequent," said Dee Sulick, Naples City Council.
In a very close vote, council decided to let the concert series continue for the next 5 Saturdays requesting that organizers get a proper permit and steer clear of complaints.
Otherwise, council could pull the permit.
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