The festival season at Crystal Palace Park got under way with the Wireless Festival on 1, 2 and 3 July.
Feedback from residents suggest that the Festival was better managed than in 2021. In a survey carried out by the CPCA last year, only 26% considered that the Festival was well-managed then, and only 10% felt that consultation with the local community was adequate.
This year, Wireless organisers Festival Republic promised to be ‘good neighbours’ and took steps to address traffic management, noise, and debris and urination in surrounding streets. The Festival was accompanied by a heavy, some might say over-heavy, police and security presence.
Last year’s survey showed that the majority of respondents do not object to large scale events in the Park. They agree that this is the right way to pay for improvements, with the Crystal Palace Park Trust promising that revenues from events will be spent in the Park. But good management is essential, and we need to be reassured that the revenues generated justify the impact on residents and park users.
The CPCA is pushing to ensure that the Crystal Palace Park Trust is held to account for its use of funds generated by events. And if the events programme doesn’t deliver enough to secure the improvements that are so desperately needed, we want the Trust to come clean with residents. We want the Trustees to challenge Bromley Council if necessary, given that it remains the owner of the Park and is therefore ultimately responsible.