ROTHBURY, Mich. — The countdown is on for the Electric Forest music festival in Rothbury, Michigan, kicking off June 20th. But while organizers scramble to get the party started, residents living near the festival grounds are feeling frustrated.
The annual event relies on the cooperation of the people living around the festival grounds. In years past they have been given "neighborhood wristbands" granting them full access to all days of the festival.
This year, however, residents tell FOX 17 that things have changed.
Patricia Day, who has lived near the grounds in Rothbury for over 10 years, says the change feels wrong.
"We can't use our roads; we can't use our cell phones. It starts weeks before the event actually begins," Day told FOX 17 Monday. "There's been a lot of changes that have been made."
In addition to the festival passes that residents were previously supplied, they were also given markers to place on their vehicles to make it easier for them to navigate the roads around their homes and the festival grounds.
"We could drive on our roads without getting pulled over. Those are now done," Day explained.
For 2024, residents report they'll only be granted access for a single day — the last day of the festival.
Day argues that the neighborhood wristband program has always been a way for organizers to acknowledge the disruptions the festival inevitably causes residents.
She feels the reduced access is a slap in the face.
Day is urging festival organizers to reconsider the changes, hoping to see the full four-day wristbands and windshield stickers reinstated.
FOX 17 has reached out to the festival's neighborhood liaison and a PR company working with Electric Forest for comment on the changes, but have yet to hear back at the time of publishing this story.
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