Some Sussex County residents are concerned about a proposed the country music festival in Harberson next summer.
The festival, proposed by Dewey Beach businessman Alex Pires, would most likely be held during the first half of August next year.
Many opponents who spoke at at a public hearing in front of the Sussex County Council on the issue Tuesday cited traffic issues and an unsupported infrastructure as reasons to deny Pires’ land-use application to host the festival and other events on 500 acres farmland approximately 10 miles east of Georgetown.
Trudy Belotti was one among the nearby residents who see the festival being detrimental to the surrounding community.
"It’s definitely a neighborhood where you see people walking their dogs, riding their bikes, kids playing. The events being proposed would undoubtedly disrupt our lives and potentially create a hazardous situation," said Belotti.
Pires, an attorney and former U.S. Senate candidate, defended his plan. He attempted to quell fears about the event’s size, saying he does not want or expect it to rival the Firefly Music Festival, which drew 80,000 visitors to Dover this year.
"Believe me, if we had 25,000 people in our second and our third year here and they were all campers, and we were paying our bills and Delaware developed a reputation as country music venue, I would be very, very happy," said Pires.
If approved, the festival, along with another planned for folk music, would likely be held during the first two weekends of August next year. Three fundraising events on dates to be determined are also part of Pires' plans for the site. Pires says his back-up plan would be to turn to the Delaware State fairgrounds in Harrington as a venue.
Some opponents suggested the fairground should be Pires' first choice since it has infrastructure already in place for such events.
The Sussex County Council deferred taking action on the proposal, saying it will wait for the County Planning and Zoning Commission’s recommendation and a traffic review it requested from DelDOT at the hearing.