This is not really a surprise. I am surprised, however, that it took this long for this news to come out. Or perhaps it’s been happening enough that now the realization is that there needs to be a few changes for next season at the new Mystic Lake Amphitheatre.
FIRST OPEN AIR VENUE OF THIS CAPACITY SINCE THE 1970S
Mystic Lake Amphitheatre in Shakopee opened this past June. And this summer has been filled with so many bands coming to the venue to entertain people in a venue that Minnesota has not had since something like the Met Stadium in the 70s. That is, as far as an open air venue with this capacity. The Met Stadium closed in 1981 and the Metrodome opened in 1982.
OPEN AIR CONCERT VENUE CAN COME WITH SOME CHALLENGES
Being that the new amphitheatre, owned by Live Nation, is an open air venue, the noise can carry quite far. So there is a toss up as to what to do when you want to have outdoor entertainment in the summer months in Minnesota, and watching the noise from that open air venue. It really shouldn’t be a surprise. And yes, here we are with people who live close to the venue complaining that it is too loud too late in the evening.
Shakopee does have a noise curfew of 10pm, while the shows at the amphitheatre usually run until about 11pm.
Mayor Matt Lehman says he’s fielding citizen concerns from as far as Bloomington and Eden Prairie, which are some 10 miles away. Lehman says large-scale event permits allow venues like the amphitheater to extend sound operations until 11 p.m., an hour after the city’s quiet hours.
NEXT YEAR THERE WILL BE SOME CHANGES TO THE VENUE AND PERFORMANCES
The fact that there needs to be changes isn’t a surprise to the Mayor and city council either. They knew that there would probably have to be some tweaks after the first year that the amphitheatre was open. And here we are…