Concerts On The Green Canceled After Beach Concert Backlash

GUILFORD, CT — In late June, a Jacobs Beach summer concert drew a large crowd of a couple of hundred people. Parks officials who were there said 80 percent of the people enjoying live music on the shore were socially distancing and when needed, wearing masks.

They concede that a group of around 40 people, who they said were the band’s family members, were not following COVID-19 guidelines. But on social media, and in letters to Parks & Recreation director Rick Maynard and First Selectman Matt Hoey, some said that what they witnessed was disturbing - people not social distancing and not wearing masks. The letters came from residents including a kayaker who watched the event from their boat, and a Yale doctor and her family, among several others.

And though the Zoom meetings of the Parks & Recreation Commission that Patch joined, or viewed later, had some members decrying “naysayers on social media” for “being negative,” in the end, they agreed on what had to be done.

Maynard said that while in his opinion the majority of people at the event were compliant, he worried that those who were not would be what was noticed.

“Oh boy, this is going blow up,” he said in a July Zoom meeting when discussing the event with commission members.

“If it wasn't for the virus it was fantastic. Two-hundred-fifty people were dying to get out. They just kept coming and coming and coming,” Maynard recalled. He said the evening was "wonderful" and well-attended: “I feel like we’re in Aruba ...except for the virus.”

Then the emails arrived in the inboxes of Maynard, Hoey and some were copied to Dennis Johnson, Guilford’s health director.

“I was extremely upset to see photos of the event today at Jacobs Beach of people with no masks, no social distancing, now these folks are coming out to shop, etc. and endangering me after all my efforts to stay safe??? Not cool town of Guilford shame on you!!! This needed better oversight. I’m happy to share the photos if you need them," one read.

“I wanted to write to express my concern for the summer concert series being held and Guilford earlier today I was kayaking at Jacobs Beach and when I got back to the shore they were hundreds of people listening to the music and I honestly did not see a single person wearing a mask or even attempting to social distance. I understand Guilford wanted its residents to have some fun but this was simply irresponsible. I saw something saying the concert would comply with COVID-19 guidelines and that was not true at all, and there was no one in forcing it. I hope you consider the safety of Guilford‘s residence as much as you care about the concerts continuing,” read another.

And this, a letter from a Yale School of Public Health assistant professor and PhD:

“...I was surprised that the friendly attendant at the parking lot simply advise us on how to pack more people into the beach “our community representatives, particularly those managing busy public spaces, should be reminding folks that they must wear a mask and advising that the risk is increased given that social distancing will be nearly impossible If there are so many people. I know we would appreciate our government stuff to be stewards and health educators as much as they can.”

Then, on a Guilford community Facebook page, photos and angry comments filled posts.

A couple of days later, Hoey said the refusal to mask-up at the concert clearly put future events in jeopardy.”

For weeks since, the debate has been percolating but it’s not the beach shows that are in jeopardy, it’s the Concerts on the Green that are now canceled.

And Maynard says no one is more upset about it than he.

Concerts on the Green have drawn tens of thousands over the past three decades

“No one is more upset about this than me,” parks director Maynard said. “For 29 years I’ve been doing these. He said it will be strange to be “home on a Sunday in summer” without the shows.

Johnson advised that based on Gov. Ned Lamont’s order that outdoor events can have no more than 500 people, and with Maynard conceding there’s no way to control the number of people that show up to the “focal point of the town,” the near 8-acre green, the summer’s concert series is scuttled.

“The problem is, we were hoping that in Phase 3 the 500 outdoor maximum would be lifted. Unless the health director, the First Selectman and the Governor all agreed, and even if we tried to do grids on the Green to socially distance people, there’s no way to control a crowd,” he said.

Over the years, some concerts on the Green have drawn thousands of people.

American Idol Nick Fradiani’s show on the Green in 2015 drew 10,000, Maynard said. And other shows, he said, have seen crowds of 2,000 and more.

“Really, we’re a victim of our own success,” he said.

And now, Maynard wonders how other towns are doing it without drawing 500 people or more. East Haven and Madison, for example, both have their summer concerts on their own Greens underway. To date, neither town has reported crowds at or near 500.

Maynard had to cancel Monkees and Simon & Garfunkel tribute bands.

“These tribute bands are a big draw. And maybe they wouldn’t attract more than 500 people, but if they did, how would we turn people away,” he asked rhetorically.

“It’s frustrating and disappointing. When I see 1,000 people enjoying a concert, it brings great satisfaction to me personally and professionally. But it’s the law. It’s the law. We have no choice. We have no way of limiting that on the Green i don’t know how we do that.”

So summer Concerts on the Green are canceled. But Maynard said he’s spoken to booking agents for bands and should things improve and should Lamont life the 500-maximum and a few other “shoulds,” he’ll keep the option open to perhaps do some September of early October concerts on the Green.

Maybe.

In the meantime, the concerts at Jacobs Beach continue. There’s one Thursday night.

The reason why those shows can still go on is capacity: 250 is the maximum allowed on the beach and that area can be divided into grids to help with social distancing, Maynard said. He said that there will be extra staff on hand to ensure people are distancing, masks will be available for people who cannot distance, and the band will make regular announcements to encourage people are practicing safety measures.

One thing that won't happen is policing mask-wearing, Maynard said.

“We will not be the mask police. That’s not our job. We encourage people to practice individual responsibility ...we’ll just ask people to be responsible. We all want to eliminate this virus. We don’t want to spread it. We want people to enjoy the concert, but we want to be safe.”

Oh, and though the concerts on the Green are canceled, there's always movie night. Drive-in movies.

Friday night is Frozen 2 night at the Guilford drive-in. Sign up now to grab your spot. And don't forget the snacks.