Kaaboo Del Mar, a three-day music festival, kicks off Friday at the Del Mar Fairgrounds and organizers say this year’s event includes lots of changes to keep the peace among festivalgoers and the community.
The outdoor festival, now in its third year, features dozens of concerts, art displays, food and drinks. But some Del Mar residents have complained the event also brings unruly crowds, traffic and noise.
The 2016 festival brought more than 75,000 music fans to Del Mar. Organizers expect even more attendees this time around.
During last year’s event, a fight broke out at the festival, leading to four arrests.
A group of people who had been waiting for two hours to see Steve Aoki perform at the venue’s ENCORE stage became angry when the small concert area reached capacity.
As tempers flared, one witness told NBC 7 chaos followed, with people throwing things and fists flying.
This year, organizers have made some changes to prevent things from getting out of control like this again.
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For one, organizers said they have added more time between concerts to allow fans to travel between stages and snag a spot to see the show. They have also changed the layout inside the festival to make it easier to get around.
Kaaboo organizers also said they are using a new sound mitigation system to dampen the sound outside the venue. They have also established a ride-share area to keep traffic around the venue flowing.
