San Francisco neighbors brace for Outside Lands
SAN FRANCISCO (KTVU) - Inside Golden Gate Park, crews are working on lighting, preparing stages and setting up tents for the three-day Outside Lands Music and Art Festival.
"We've got Mumford and Sons, the Black Keys, Elton John, Sam Smith, Kendrick Lamar, Wilco, some many real great bands," said Gregg Perloff, CEO, Another Planet Entertainment.
"So many bands with local connections. I think it’s our best line up ever."
Organizers said tickets sold out in about 45 minutes this year.
Adree Larue of Walnut Creek said she will be working at the event.
"I really am looking forward to it. It kind of brings a lot of people together. It's something that's part of San Francisco. It's part of the community," said Larue.
But many who live in the neighborhoods around Golden Gate Park are less than thrilled.
"You're a prisoner here and you can't get out," said Charlie Blevins, who lives in and manages an apartment complex near the event's main entrance at 30th and Fulton in the Richmond District. "It's like the airport. It's like a drop-off and pick-up zone. The tenants can't leave their garages and they can't come back because it's just packed with taxis and limos."
Blevins put up signs he got from the city that warn people not to block the driveway. But he said with the festival's main entrance at their doorstep, many residents are leaving town to avoid the noise and hassles that come with a festival that draws tens of thousands each day.
"It's crazy. There's people that are just drunk. They urinate at the edges of the garage doors," said Blevins.
Another neighbor Mark Oates said he plans to attend and is excited to see Elton John perform. He said he doesn't mind the inconveniences one weekend a year.
"We've been looking forward to this for a few months now. We got our tickets back in March so it's been a while of build-up. We're really excited," said Oates.
SFMTA said there would be dozens of extra Muni trains and buses each day to help get folks in and out of the area.
They're discouraging people from driving, saying the neighborhoods around Golden Gate Park will be heavily congested and there's extremely limited parking in the surrounding neighborhoods.
Ride share companies are also gearing up for the rush.
The music starts Friday at noon and goes until Sunday evening.