COLORADO SPRINGS — Friday's opening night at the Ford Amphitheater in Colorado Springs was met with a few rain showers, but it wasn't enough to stop around 8,000 people from packing the venue.
The amphitheater, developed by Colorado Springs-based entertainment company VENU, welcomed One Republic as its opening performer. The outdoor concert venue is on the city's north side near North Gate Boulevard and Voyager Parkway.
Concertgoers flooded the doors with rainjackets and umbrellas in hand, excited to get their first look at the venue. April Osborn said she's happy the Ford Amphitheater is so close to her home in Colorado Springs.
“It’s so close. So we parked about a couple hours ago and then just walked around and hung out so we’re excited for when it starts," she said.
Other neighbors living nearby said the proximity of the venue to their homes is cause for concern, not excitement. Kat Gayle said she could hear Monday night's sound check while sitting inside her home.
"They could have been in our front yard with a boom box. We could sing along if you knew the lyrics. It was insane," said Gayle. "We have school starting next week, and some little kids can sleep through any sound. Other kids are triggered by every sound."
She and a group of neighbors living in the Northgate area have been pushing back against the amphitheater's plans for more than a year. The group said they have concerns about increased noise levels, traffic, and concertgoers parking in their neighborhoods.
"There's significant research to suggest and show that really there is an impact on psychological and physical health with this," said Louis Hoffman, who's a psychologist and lives a little over a mile from the venue.
The City of Colorado Springs sent News5 a statement on Friday night about the noise level concern:
“Ford Amphitheater has been granted a noise hardship permit which authorizes it to exceed the City noise limits (City Code § 9.8.104) during the outdoor events identified in the permit. The hardship permit does not authorize the Amphitheater to exceed the noise limit conditions that were contained in the approved development plan for the property. The City will be monitoring events at the Amphitheater and gathering noise data to determine if any event exceeds the noise limit conditions on the approved development plan.”
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