Reggae fest expecting big crowd
Weekend event in new Washington location
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Organizer Matthew DeLory of Marshfield points in the direction of the performance stage at the remote Washington location of the 4th Annual Rise Up Vermont Roots and Culture Fest, which begins this afternoon. The three-day festival ending Sunday, previously held in Waitsfield, features reggae and other musical performers, camping, and outdoor games. DeLory expects at least 800 to attend. STEFAN HARD/TIMES ARGUS |
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By Stefan Hard Staff Writer - Published: June 26, 2009
WASHINGTON — By mid-afternoon today, the hills of Washington will be alive with music, though the delicate chords of "Edelweiss" are not likely to be heard.
Instead, it will be the percussive rhythms of reggae and roots music from performers like Dan Carlos and Queen Omega, from as near as Boston and far away as Jamaica and Senegal, that will fill the air.
At 2 p.m. today, the gates open on the 4th Annual Rise Up Vermont Roots and Culture Fest, held at a remote Washington outdoor center that normally hosts weddings in the summer and snowmobile gatherings in the winter.
Washington, a town of slightly over 1,000 residents, could see its population nearly double over the weekend, as organizers of the three-day event, which ends Sunday, expect at least 800 to attend.
Washington Town Clerk Carol Davis says the town has likely never seen a gathering of this expected size, and has no permit requirements in place for large public gatherings. She said a few residents have expressed some concern to her about issues of traffic, emergency access, and clean-up associated with such an event.
In previous years, the festival was one day only, and held at the Bundy Center in Waitsfield.
Davis said the town's selectboard is pondering a draft ordinance on large public gatherings supplied by the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, but the board wants to see how this weekend's festival plays out before taking any action.
Festival organizer Matthew DeLory of Marshfield said his staff is prepared to deal with more than 1,000 attendees, if necessary, and has hired security and medical personnel to be on hand during the festival to deal with any contingencies. In addition, the festival is committed to providing a clean-up crew to sweep the area of trash afterwards. Tent camping and RV sites are being offered at the site, located on Green Trail Road near the hamlet of East Orange.
Vermont State Police Lt. Paul White said Wednesday that he was contacted by Davis in early June about the upcoming festival, and said he visited the site of the festival on June 9 and spoke with host Stephen Barbour, who leases the property from a timber management company. White said Wednesday he got as much information as he could from Barbour during his visit, but hasn't been able to contact festival organizers.
"They did not reach out to us at all," said White. White said he did not have a phone number for the organizers, only an e-mail address, and no one returned his e-mails.
State permits for public gatherings are only required for assemblages of 2,500 or more people, White said.
At least two sets of directions to the event posted on the festival's Web site may cause problems. The directions are clearly based on Web site software and not real-world conditions, and in two instances include Class IV roads that feature stretches that are impassable to vehicles that are not four-wheel drive with high ground clearance. DeLory said signs will be posted on roads leading to the festival to help vehicles navigate a practical path.
Cell phone service is "sketchy" at the festival site, said White, but he said Barbour has a land-line telephone service on-site.
DeLory was at the site Wednesday making preparations with Barbour, including brush-hogging and mowing additional parking areas. Co-organizer David Roots of Mendocino, Calif., was handling other matters. Vendors will be arriving to provide food and beverages. DeLory stressed the festival is committed to providing activities and an appropriate atmosphere for children, and he said no alcohol is being served at the festival, although attendees can bring their own.
The festival schedule features live music on the flatbed stage up until about 12:30 a.m. both today and Saturday, with what DeLory described as an after-hours dance hall tent provided for bands that want to continue playing even later. The remote location of the venue may preclude any complaints from neighbors about noise at night, but if any complaints come in after 10 p.m., police will respond according to state law, said White.
White said he doesn't have the means of posting any units at the festival, but he hopes to be able to send units through the area a couple of times during the day, and again at night, which is more than normal patrol coverage in that area.
"The roads (in the area leading to the site) are not suitable for roadside parking or high volume traffic," said White. He said troopers will check to see if emergency vehicles could get through to the festival site. It is hoped the only jams will be created by musicians on the festival stage.
Orange County Sheriff Bill Bohnyak said his department has a limited contract with the town of Washington and can't afford to assign units to the festival, either, but he will have special DUI enforcement units in the area at times during the festival, typically in the evening and late night hours.
DeLory is excited to have the festival in its new venue, and he said he has high hopes that the festival will fulfill its goal of "cultivating global unity through sound." Proceeds from the nonprofit festival are slated to go to the building of a new combination school and community center in Kafountine, Senegal.
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