Residents Protest Late-Night Hours of Rolling Meadows Festival

Residents near Lower Styx Road are expressing their opposition to the upcoming three-day Rolling Meadows Festival, scheduled to run from December 29, 2025, to January 1, 2026. Concerned community members have launched a petition urging festival organizers to reconsider the event’s late-night hours, which extend until 2 a.m..

Betty Chapman, a local resident, emphasized that the community is not against concerts but believes they should take place within reasonable hours. “We’re concerned at the festival going on all day until 2 a.m. or later. We’re going to hear that booming bass all night,” she stated. The festival, featuring over 80 local and international acts across four stages, has relocated this year to a 62-hectare site at 240 Lower Styx Road, expanding its duration from previous two-day events that attracted up to 7,000 attendees.

Chapman highlighted that approximately 30 properties are affected by the festival’s noise and traffic. A core group of eight neighbors has voiced strong concerns, particularly about how the sound will carry, depending on wind conditions. She recounted her frustration with the limited consultation process, stating that one of the festival organizers only spoke to her husband while she was away. “I thought, what the… It’s the first time I’ve ever hung up on someone in more than 10 years,” Chapman remarked.

Many residents fear for their properties during the festival. Organizers have offered compensation for alternative accommodation and plan to hire personnel to address street cleanliness and security. Despite these offers, Chapman expressed her community’s reluctance to leave their homes. “We don’t want to be away from our homes. Our properties won’t be safe, we won’t be safe,” she said.

Concerns extend beyond noise to traffic management. Chapman warned of potential gridlock with an influx of up to 10,000 people on narrow two-lane roads. She mentioned the additional challenges posed by the annual New Year’s Day gala at nearby Spencerville, raising questions about how local infrastructure will handle the increased congestion.

Chapman and her husband have lived in the area for 14 years and have expressed that they would have reconsidered their purchase if they had known about the festival’s plans. Many residents, particularly retirees, chose the area for its peaceful ambiance. “We’re not happy,” she concluded.

Preparations for the festival site are already underway, despite the city council’s planning and consents head, Mark Stevenson, stating that resource consent has not yet been granted. The council is currently reviewing a revised proposal for the event and is awaiting further information from the festival organizers. The lineup is expected to be announced shortly.

Despite attempts to reach festival organizers for comment, no response was available at the time of publication. As the community continues to voice its concerns, the future of the Rolling Meadows Festival hangs in the balance.