Owners of Ford Ampitheater present noise mitigation plan to Colorado Springs Mayor
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - Mayor Yemi Mobolade and the owner of the controversial Ford Amphitheater held a meeting following the 2024 concert season.
The city says that data shows the amphitheater is having an overall positive impact economically, with more than 100,000 people attending shows and individuals coming from more than 5,000 zip codes. Local businesses, including hotels and restaurants, are also reporting increased sales related to concert activity.
The presentation from the owners is available to the public and can be found here.
The presentation notes that they did make changes mid-summer to help with the noise complaints and says that they will continue to develop a plan to mitigate noise.
The plan focuses on three action areas: physical, electro-acoustic, and operational changes. It proposes material changes to the structure of the amphitheater that are significant in both physical size and cost to them. This includes an expansion of the solid surface wall, sound curtains, and sound absorption panels. They are also continuing to model and test ideal speaker locations to address low-frequency noise, and proposals are being reviewed to reduce decibel limits and earlier end times for non-weekend shows.
Councilman Dave Donelson says he just wants to make sure these are lasting solutions, "It’s all gonna come down to does it work. Right? Just like if you were at a hotel and the room next to you had loud music and they said they were going to turn the TV down and hang sheets from the walls and all this stuff. That’s great. But it’s just gonna come down to is it effective or not?"
VENU, the owner, is expected to provide a more specific timeline in the coming weeks.
Next week, the City will publish the results of an independent noise study commissioned by City Council President Helms and Mayor Mobolade to track amphitheater noise from the 2024 season.
