A “comprehensive sound-abatement program,” including giving Minnesota State Fair management ultimate control over the soundboard, is one of the conditions the Soundset music festival must meet if it returns in 2017, State Fair management said.
That’s the result after excessive noise and other problems spilled into the Como Park neighborhood on May 29 from Soundset, a daylong hip-hop festival that attracted more than 30,000 fans to the fairgrounds.
The District 10 Como Community Council compiled residents’ complaints about music volume, profanity, parking, traffic congestion, trash and loitering during and after the 10-hour festival. District 10 residents then used letters, phone conversations and a face-to-face meeting on June 30 to detail the problems and propose potential remedies.
After that meeting, Soundset’s organizers—Minneapolis-based Rhymesayers Entertainment—proposed the sound-abatement plan, said Jim Sinclair, deputy general manager of the fair. Rhymesayers’ plan includes redirecting speakers, monitoring sound levels outside the fairgrounds and, if necessary, giving Minnesota State Fair personnel “control of sound emanating from Soundset,” Sinclair said.
There is no signed deal in place, but Soundset can return on May 28, 2017, if it agrees to implement the sound-abatement plan and meet other conditions, Sinclair said.
Meanwhile, District 10 continues to talk with fair management and City of St. Paul officials to implement ways to reduce traffic, parking and other impacts on the neighborhood during Soundset and other large fairgrounds events.
For more details on the Soundset discussions, see District 10’s website, www.district10comopark.org.
