Ugu Jazz Festival plans scrutinised
Festival organisers have promised to turn the noise levels down.
SOUTH Coast farmers residing near the Ugu Sports and Leisure Centre had the opportunity of voicing their concerns regarding the Ugu Jazz Festival directly to the festival organisers and the owner of Cyassounds Holdings on Tuesday.
The meeting was held at the Ugu Sports and Leisure Centre. Concerns were mainly the noise level and the security measures.
“I would like to find out why the festival is allowed to carry on until four in the morning, when other events which take place in residential areas finish at midnight,” said Scot Scott who owns a nearby farm. He wanted to find out if Ugu wasn’t breaking any by-laws.
Farmers also requested that security be tightened on the night of the event. “Even though security was improved last year, one of the neighbouring farmer’s fences was damaged during the event,” said one of the farmers, who also revealed that the fence has still not been fixed, allowing trespassers onto the farm.
“I would like to applaud the organisers of the festival on last year’s event, the park and ride system really worked, cutting down on traffic,” said Tracey Wichmann.
Mrs Wichmann complained about the noise level during the festival. “Is there a way that the speakers could be turned down by a decimal?” she requested. “We have animals on our farms and the noise really disturbs them,” she added.
“We can’t sleep on the night of the Ugu Jazz Festival. We hear every single song. Does the music really have to be played so loud?” she asked.
Siyabonga Msomi of Cyassounds promised that the organising team would work on the things which were brought up in the meeting and thanked all those who had attended.
