CORONA — The Parks Department has denied all applications for multi-day festivals at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park this summer, saying they would interfere with the public's use of the park.
The city received three applications for summertime mega festivals from AEG Live, The Madison Square Garden Company and Founders Entertainment.
But Parks Department officials announced Monday that they don't believe the festivities are the right fit for the park, especially since it already hosts so many other cultural and athletic events when it's warm.
"While we are heartened by the interest in one of Queens’ most historic parks, our primary concern is ensuring the park is available for the many New Yorkers who call Flushing Meadows Corona Park their backyard," Commissioner Mitchell Silver said in a statement.
AEG Live's production company, Goldenvoice, had support of local Queens politicians, including Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland and Rep. Joe Crowley, who said the company had been engaging Queens for two years.
Corona's Community Board 4, however, said it only found out about the shows in the media — and expressed concern over parking issues, congestion and the borough's largest park being used for private purposes.
Borough President Melinda Katz was also skeptical about the concerts, saying it was "unclear how limited resources expended for events of such scale would be returned to Queens and its families."
She applauded Monday's announcement, saying that while she encourages large-scale events in Queens, they need more public input.
"The use of our public parks ... needs to be publicly vetted and coordinated under an official city policy, because the absence of one renders the entire process unfair," she said in a statement.
Ferreras-Copeland said she was disappointed "because our community has so much potential and so much to offer."
She added that she'll "continue to work towards bringing world-class events like this to Queens and improving parks for everyday visitors and district residents."
Goldenvoice's producers quickly rebounded from the denial for Flushing Meadows-Corona Park.
They announced their concert, named Panorama after the model at the Queens Museum, would be held at Randall's Island the weekend of July 22-24.
And they aren't ready to give up on the borough just yet.
"We look forward to continuing our discussions with NYC Parks to create an event to take place in Queens in the future,” organizer Mark Shulman said.
