The Juerga Fest in Marbella Changes Location After Protests Over Noise Pollution

The upcoming edition of Juerga Fest, one of the main musical events organized by the City Council during the summer, will be held at the Mediterranean Park, next to El Pinillo beach, instead of the La Represa stream park, which hosted it last year. The event will take place on June 6, from 7:00 PM to 3:00 AM and will feature performances by the musical groups Lérica; La Corredera from Córdoba, who blends flamenco with modern trends; MasaMadre; and local artists D'Jarana, who will open the festival, and DJ Sweet Suárez, who will close it. Additionally, a lively marching band will entertain the crowd during the stage changes of the various artists. The change of location comes after residents around La Represa stream protested for weeks over the noise generated by some events promoted by the City Council, which also lacked safety and self-protection plans and acoustic studies, the residents pointed out. The park is built over the vaulting of a channel, which, the neighbors add, amplifies the acoustic pollution inside the homes. After the health crisis caused by Covid, the number of events hosted in the park has increased "considerably". "Far from reducing these activities, the duration, number, nuisances, and days of the events have actually increased. La Represa has become a permanent space for celebrations of all kinds," some residents noted last November. Just last autumn, the park hosted the celebration of Hispanic Day, with musical performances on October 10, 11, 12, and 13; a nine-hour non-stop rock concert on October 25; and a DJ party on Halloween. The events added to those that began to be hosted in the park since April 14, with a special focus in the summer. Just in June, La Represa hosted musical events on the 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, and 20th. Outraged by the noise pollution, the neighbors collected signatures to ask the City Council to reduce the number of events at La Represa and move some to other locations in the municipality. Faced with the indifference of the City Council, the neighbors turned to the Andalusian Ombudsman, before whom the City Council committed to adopting measures. After months of protests, the neighbors have managed to make the City Council, at least partly, take the music elsewhere.