But with the recent change of venue announcement comes concerns from some Blue Lake community members about the festival taking place in their town’s tiny park. Last week a post on the Blue Lake Community News and Crime Watch Facebook page, prompted people of Blue Lake to question the potential impacts of the event, including loud music, other late night noise, parking issues and the inclusion of camping at the park.

Blue Lake Parks and Recreation Director Nathan Sailor told the Outpost today that, although some details are still being ironed out, the City of Blue Lake and the festival organizers are making sure to address all of these concerns.

“The organizers are really trying to work with us,” Sailor told the Outpost. “They don’t want to piss off any of the neighbors. It would look bad.” 

Sailor said that one of the biggest concerns has been that the music was going to go late into the night. The original poster for the event, stated that music would go until midnight. But this has since been updated. Sailor said that the festival will adhere to Blue Lake’s noise ordinance of 10 p.m.  Music is planned to end at 9 p.m. on Saturday and 7 p.m. on Sunday.

But Sailor realizes that the music isn’t the only noise concern for Blue Lake residents. The festival is holding a Silent Disco on Saturday until midnight at the Blue Lake Roller Rink. This was posed as a solution to having late night music. However, Sailor has some slight concerns about people outside late at night. Sailor said he expects the festival organizers to have a plan for addressing people making noise in the parking lot.

The festival also now includes some on-site camping on Torg Field. Sailor said that campers will also have to adhere to 10 p.m. noise ordinance. Also, they will not be allowed to have fires or any open flames and must observe emergency access requirements.

To the best of his knowledge, Sailor said, this will be the first time camping has been allowed in Perigot park. Although camping is not usually permitted in the park, exceptions can be made for special events.  Sailor said the city is interested in allowing more camping at events in the future and will be having its first campout event as a part of the Mad River Enduro bike race on Sept. 6 and 7.

Though Blue Lake is no stranger to music festivals and large events, Sailor said the Funk ‘n’ Reggae Festival will likely be the largest the town has seen. The festival will utilize the entire space at Perigot Park, including the Clemence baseball field, which is where the stage will be.

The fire marshal will decide the maximum capacity for the event probably by next week, which will determine how many tickets can be sold, Sailor said.

It was because of the potential crowd size, that the festival needed to move from the original location on B Street in Eureka. The festival’s publicist Kaati Gaffney told the Outpost that the City of Eureka had signed off on everything, but, with the popular headliners, there was a concern about the location being able to accommodate the crowd.

“Michael Franti is a big draw,” Gaffney said.

Though the venue change is sort of last minute, Gaffney is excited to move to the larger space, which has allowed the event to add features. In addition to the music stage and on-site camping, Funk ‘n’ Reggae will feature a kid’s zone, arts and crafts booths, local food vendors, a beer and wine garden and a 30 foot projection dome.

Gaffney also said that Blue Lake city staff has been very welcoming. “They’re really excited that we’re coming,” Gaffney told the Outpost. “It’s turning into a really nice partnership. We’re super thrilled.”

For those who still have questions about this quickly approaching new festival, you can find more information on the event’s website.

Sailor also encouraged residents to contact the city with any questions, or attend the upcoming Blue Lake City Council meeting on Tuesday August 27 at 6:30 p.m at the Skinner Store Building at 111 Greenwood Road. The council will be discussing the Perigot Park master plan. You can view the agenda here.