Last summer, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz was catching a lot of flack for his Seaside Summer Concert Series at Asser Levy Park. Locals said he was breaking noise codes, and then they complained that he was using Rikers inmates for cheap labor at the concerts. The obvious solution would be to move these concert events to Rikers Island (surrounded by water! More $1/hour labor!)... but Markowitz has gone in a different direction: The space where the Ringling Bros. circus had been performing.
With Siren Festival moving out, the area could use some music, and the Brooklyn Paper reports the series may settle into the West 21st Street parking lot that Ringling Bros. has used in the past. The only problem may be the bill. Markowitz had been paying just $25 per event at Asser Levy; the parking lot property owner wouldn't comment on how much he'll be charging the Borough Pres, however.
As for the neighbors at Asser Levy Park, they plan to turn the former concert site back into a "quiet" space—serenity now!
