A Tallarook resident has taken an annual Easter music festival to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal over ‘likely music noise that might arise’.
The applicant sought an interim enforcement order, IEO, to ensure the Boogie Music Festival complied with the conditions of its permit around noise monitoring, which was refused by VCAT on March 26.
The three-day Boogie Music Festival has run over the Easter long weekend for the past 14 years at Our Friend’s Farm in Tallarook, formerly Bruzzie Park.
After being the subject of noise complaints for several years, resulting in fines from council in 2019, the 2021 festival will be the last at the Tallarook site and it will find a new location in 2022.
The IEO sought by the applicant would have created a different scheme for music noise monitoring. It still required the noise monitoring to be undertaken by a professional and to be paid for by the respondent. The differences were the duration of the monitoring period, the locations of the music noise monitoring to be on the same six residential dwellings as were previously tested, and for council to arrange the music noise monitoring.
VCAT determined there was no breach of the festival’s permit, which, since 2019, required noise monitoring by council, a cost which fell to the site’s director. VCAT also reasoned there was no evidence to suggest there were likely to be non‑compliances at the festival this year.
On March 26 Boogie posted on its Facebook page amended restrictions to the sold-out festival including a ‘strict sound curfew’ which would see bands finishing on the mainstage at 10pm every night, and bars closing at 11pm on Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
“Due to COVID and a bunch of other new restrictions being enforced this Easter, Boogie is going to be a bit different. We want you to read and take note of the following main differences. If this doesn’t work for you, we will be offering refunds until midnight Monday March 29,” the post read.
After the 2020 festival was cancelled due to COVID-19, this year’s Boogie offers three days of camping and music by some of Victoria’s most popular artists including electronic jazz group Mildlife, folk rock band Cash Savage and the Last Drinks, and DJ Sophie McAlister.
The fully-licensed 221-acre property is home to four boutique music festivals, and hosts weddings and other events, and was used as a filming location for TV program Russell Coight’s All Aussie Adventures.
