JOHN E. SETTLE JR
This weekend Crawfest will be held at Betty Virginia Park.
Friday--tomorrow--the event is from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Sat. it runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Sun. the event is from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Unlike the prior festival, tickets must be purchased to attend.
The event will bring large crowds to the park and surrounding neighbourhoods, and inevitably parking and traffic issues.
The bands playing will be heard for a radius of a mile or more.
Its time for this festival to move to Festival Plaza in downtown Shreveport.
Crawfest has pulled a permit from SPAR for the event , which allows for a fee to be charged.
How much costs SPAR incurs or any other Shreveport public agency will be the subject of a public records request after the event, including any damage to the park.
Festivals are great for the city and there are several one day events with limited hours like the Highland Jazz and Blues Festival and the Cedar Grove Renaissance Festival.
Having a three day event, tying up a large park utilized by many citizens each weekend, and having bands play till 9 p.m. on Sat. night is just too much use and abuse of the park and the surrounding neighbourhoods.
Next year this festival should NOT be a Betty Virginia Park.