Riverside Park event organizer feels wronged by city over last minute changes

Sanctioned events at Riverside Park have generated controversy and complaints over the last two weekends, pitting residents, event organizers and even city councillors against city staff for altering plans and allowing the late-night concerts to happen. 

The open-ground Garba event that took place on Sept. 7 at Riverside Park was approved back in May and was allowed to run until midnight despite the fact city council was never asked to approve a noise exemption. 

That angered Ward 3 councillor Corey Kimpson who told CambridgeToday she was launching an investigation after finding out the event was approved by city staff without council's knowledge. 

Before Saturday's event she said it should not have been approved to run until midnight as Riverside Park closes at 11 p.m. 

After taking her concerns to city hall, staff were tasked with working with the event organizers to align the Sept. 7 Garba concert with city policy. This meant moving the event away from the grandstand to the Rogers Field side of the park near Highway 401 and making sure everything was shut down at 10 p.m. 

The organizers said they felt like the city pressured them into changing their plans. They were told by staff they wouldn't release the permit if they didn't comply, leaving 3,500 ticket holders asking for refunds for their mistake. 

"We felt like they had their leg on our necks and there was nothing we could do," said the owner of Panghat Entertainment Ltd. Jatin Mayani. "They came to us a few days before our event and told us we needed to change everything. It wasn't fair." 

Deputy city manager Hardy Bromberg addressed the issue in an interview this afternoon, noting that over the last two weeks the city has learned a lot about hosting larger events. 

"I think the key thing for us is that our community is growing and changing and so are the demands for public spaces," he said. 

"Events like this are unprecedented in our community and we're just trying to do our best to navigate what the framework of events is going to look like in Cambridge going forward." 

Bromberg acknowledged the fact city staff removed council's input for noise exemptions because it will be a part of an upcoming proposal to update the noise bylaw. 

Although this update is not currently in place, nor has it been approved by council, Bromberg said he believes it will streamline the event permit process and notify residents about what's happening through other channels instead of the current practice of discussing it during council meetings. 

Bromberg also admitted the city approved the extended use of Riverside Park beyond the park's regular 11 p.m. closure for both Garba events.

But that was before complaints flooded into city hall after the first event, prompting staff to revoke or ask the organizers to end the Sept. 7 event early. 

Mayani said he only complied with the city's demands because he didn't want to let down his paying customers. 

"The city officials did not make this event easy for us to have and it was very difficult all night," he said. "The park supervisor shut down the only road to park and over 300 people could not attend." 

Mayani said the city declined to let paying customers into the event area as well by shutting down the walking path at the back of the park.

That move generated a number of online complaints from residents who said they were told by security that they were not allowed to enter the park.

"I now have to refund over $12,000 to those who couldn't come to the show," he added. "I have never had so many issues organizing something like I have in Cambridge. It's like they don't want us there." 

Bromberg declined to speak on the parking situation. 

Reviews left on the business's event page bash Mayani and his organization for poor time management and lack of communication about the change of location. 

But Mayani said as decisions to change the event location and end the concert early came only a few days before the actual event, there wasn't enough time to inform all ticketholders. 

"My reputation as a host is being ruined in the region because of this," he said. "How can I inform that many people that we have to change everything." 

Complaints were also coming in from across the city the night of the event, with some Galt residents claiming they could hear music. 

In an email, Travis Beatty said Saturday's concert was so loud it shook the neighborhood. 

"Council replies are not useful as they seem to brush it off, but what happened last night was beyond crazy."

Mayani also said they were given no time to end the show as bylaw and police were ready to shut them down as soon as the clock turned to 10 p.m. 

"Usually with events we have a little grace period to end, maybe 10 to 15 minutes, but there was none. They were being so rude to us and we didn't understand why," said Mayani. "You think they would be a bit understanding since they are the ones who made all of these last-minute changes to the event." 

Cambridge Ward 1 councillor Helen Shwery said she was bombarded with calls from the community over the Labour Day weekend and she knew nothing about the first concert. 

"For the first event I was completely blindsided," she said. "I was confident that the city would never approve of an event that ran that late and was that loud, but they did." 

Shwery agreed with Kimpson that someone needed to answer for this "mistake at the city" and councillors should be notified and have a say about events that are happening in their wards. 

"I just want to apologize to all the residents, seniors and those who were affected by the event, because that shouldn't have happened," she said. 

Shwery doesn't fault the event organizers, because they were just doing what they thought they were allowed to do given the permit. 

"I went down and spoke with the organizers myself during the second event and they were understanding of our concerns," she said. "But maybe Riverside Park isn't the best place to host these events." 

Mayani doesn't plan on coming back to Cambridge any time soon as he describes this process as being difficult on him and his business.

He also said the hate he and members of the Indian community have seen on social media has turned ugly and violent. 

"I don't want to use this word, but some of the complaints felt like they were racist and more based on anger than actual facts," he said. "This was the first time hosting an event that I felt like we were not welcome in the community." 

The noise exemption and events permit are now under review at the city along with every other bylaw. 

Bromberg hopes that with the hiring of a new events coordinator, the city will better understand its shortfalls. 

"Riverside Park is a fantastic facility and we know our park space and our public spaces will continue to grow and then I think that's a great thing," said Bromberg. 

"We're simply looking forward to establishing some proper plans to best deliver the events across our community to a growing community and in a much more diverse community."