Muddy Music Midtown worries Atlanta Pride organizers about Piedmont Park conditions

“We’re obviously worried about the park,” Cooke said Monday.

Pride, Conservancy and city officials will especially review the damage to the sod in the meadow where tens of thousands of people trampled the grounds during the popular Music Midtown fest Sept. 20-21. It is the meadow where Atlanta Pride also sets up its main stage for live music acts.

Cooke said city and park officials can decide any time if they don’t want a festival in the park but he has no idea what might happen this week.

“It would be the first time they decided to relocate or revise plans two weeks before Pride,” Cooke said.

Pride was moved to the Civic Center in 2008 because of the drought parching the park.

Atlanta journalist Maria Saporta wrote a column about her experience at Music Midtown this year and described the park on Saturday as “big gushy marshes of mud.”

When the rain poured down on Saturday, large portions of the grassy meadows and lawns facing Music Midtown’s three stages were turned into big gushy marshes of mud.

How unfortunate that it rained on the biggest day of Music Midtown — but it’s not new for the event to have bad weather, and the rain certainly didn’t keep the crowds away.

But the rain did damage the green space in the park. And unlike the festival’s former locations, there is much more grass and much less pavement in Piedmont Park — making it much more vulnerable to the trampling of thousands of feet.

Yvette Bowden, president and CEO of the Piedmont Park Conservancy, issued a statement Monday on the Conservancy’s website:

When the rain poured down on Saturday, large portions of the grassy meadows and lawns facing Music Midtown’s three stages were turned into big gushy marshes of mud.

How unfortunate that it rained on the biggest day of Music Midtown — but it’s not new for the event to have bad weather, and the rain certainly didn’t keep the crowds away.

But the rain did damage the green space in the park. And unlike the festival’s former locations, there is much more grass and much less pavement in Piedmont Park — making it much more vulnerable to the trampling of thousands of feet.

– See more at: http://saportareport.com/blog/2013/09/loving-music-midtown-and-loving-piedmont-park-shouldnt-be-mutually-exclusive-2/#sthash.QsYxKTST.dpufYvette Bowden, the president and CEO of the Piedmont Park Conservancy issued a statement on the Conservancy’s website on Monday to address concerns about the park.

When the rain poured down on Saturday, large portions of the grassy meadows and lawns facing Music Midtown’s three stages were turned into big gushy marshes of mud.

How unfortunate that it rained on the biggest day of Music Midtown — but it’s not new for the event to have bad weather, and the rain certainly didn’t keep the crowds away.

But the rain did damage the green space in the park. And unlike the festival’s former locations, there is much more grass and much less pavement in Piedmont Park — making it much more vulnerable to the trampling of thousands of feet.

– See more at: http://saportareport.com/blog/2013/09/loving-music-midtown-and-loving-piedmont-park-shouldnt-be-mutually-exclusive-2/#sthash.QsYxKTST.dpufYvette Bowden, the president and CEO of the Piedmont Park Conservancy, issued a statement on the Conservancy’s website on Monday after many people raised concerns.

Many of Piedmont Park Conservancy’s supporters have reached out to us with concern regarding the park’s post-event condition.  Music Midtown’s large crowds mixed with Saturday’s rainy conditions have had an obvious effect on portions of the Meadow and Oak Hill.

The City of Atlanta makes all permitting decisions as it pertains to events in city parks. As is typical with events in Piedmont, the Conservancy has and will continue to offer counsel on best use and practices for staging events, load-in, load-out and repairs.

The event organizer is responsible for 100 percent of the cost of remediation. We are focused on a safe load-out and are all in the process of finalizing a remediation plan. The City and event organizer will be installing temporary fencing while repairs are being made. We ask that you respect the temporary fencing and continue to be safe while visiting the park.

The Peachtree Road Race that attracts thousands of runners from all over the world to Atlanta over the July Fourth weekend this year was also held on a very rainy day that soaked the park and transformed the meadow into a muddy mess.

Tracy Lott, director of marketing and communications for theAtlanta Track Club, which puts on the annual Peachtree Road Race, told the GA Voice the track club paid approximately $10,000 this year to repair the park after rain poured down on the popular race.

A spokesperson for the Conservancy said the city’s Parks and Recreation Department would have the final say on whether or not Atlanta Pride is allowed to utilize the meadow or not. A call and email to parks and rec officials were not immediately returned.

However, in a story by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Atlanta Parks Commissioner George Dusenbury said the “park is still functional.”