The sour fight over the Byron Bay Shire and live music continues, following Bluesfest’s director, Peter Noble, slamming the local council’s “draconian” plans for a new major event clause that would limit the beach-side city to just two major music events per year.
Scores of Australia’s most popular musicians have already thrown their hat in the ring to defend major music events in the shire, but now industry figurehead Michael Chugg, of Chugg Entertainment, is joining the cause, throwing his support behind Noble and Bluesfest.
Undercover reports that Chugg has added his defence to the chorus of star-studded musicians: including Ben Harper, Michael Franti, John Butler, Kasey Chambers and The Cat Empire; who have already come out in protest of the Local Environmental Plan. A policy that redefines festival events in the Byron Bay area as having more than 6,000 people and unlike previous proposals will be including single-day events in the new quota.
Chugg, released his statement on the Bluesfest website, showing his definite support of the event:
“I wish to see a more liberal policy that does not impose conditions that are unacceptable to me and the Australian Music Industry. I would point out that my company had spoken to Mr Noble About using the Bluesfest site for a concert with Sir Elton John In November this year… but the ridiculous short sited [sic] policy of the council has once more seen a major event go to Regional Queensland.”
The promoter’s defence joins a long list of vocal support for Bluesfest, including the soul-come-bluesman Ben Harper who pleas “you have something so special, please do not diminish it in this way” and the titular John Butler trio frontman who expressed his “concern over the proposed Byron Shire Council Music Event policy which sees to limit two concerts or festivals a year to the area.”
Bluesfest Festival Director Peter Noble has been fighting for Bluesfest’s endurance in the area with continued petitioning, “we only need a little over 500 signatures to get the petition debated on the floor of the State parliament,” he says “we have almost 9,500 individual petitions lodged so far, and need 10,000 to get this crucial thing done.”
His statement also declares “IF the council do not amend their policy, we would need to move away from Byron Shire once our current approval expires in 2020. THIS IS NOT RIGHT!”
Noble has been the most furiously vocal in the contentious saga over the festival site, whose origins begin nearly six years ago, including his most recent attack in February at a hearing held by the Public Assessment Commission tasked with deciding the fate of the proposed festival site.
