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Musician trade association MusicPortland said it plans to appeal the city’s approval of a plan by Live Nation Entertainment and two local developers to build a music venue on land owned by Prosper Portland at the east end of the Hawthorne Bridge.
MusicPortland opposes the plan in part because Live Nation, based in Beverly Hills, Calif., was sued for anti-competitive behavior earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Justice and 30 states. Live Nation plans to operate the venue, which is being developed by local firms Beam Development and Colas Development Group.
Live Nation owns or controls some 350 music venues worldwide, including the Hayden Homes Amphitheater in Bend, the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, Wash., and Lumen Field in Seattle. It manages 410 bands and musicians, from U2 to Pitbull. It promotes concerts and, in 2010, bought Ticketmaster, giving it end-to-end control of the live music business.
Yesterday, a hearings officer with the City Auditor’s Office granted approval to continue development of the Portland venue, which has drawn opposition from environmentalists because of its proximity to the Willamette River. The Live Nation team had asked to reduce the size of a green roof required by city code. Staff at the Bureau of Development Services and the hearings officer agreed.
“There is no question the city would benefit from a music venue this size, but allowing Live Nation and TicketMaster to run it would be a terrible decision for Portland and its music community,” MusicPortland policy chair Jamie Dunphy said in a statement. “It would not only undermine the integrity of Portland’s independent music scene but also the character of the city for a monopolistic organization to control a critical venue for both local and national acts.”
MusicPortland started a crowdfunding campaign to raise at least $6,079, the amount that the Portland City Council charges to hear an appeal. Total costs are expected to reach $20,000.
MusicPortland’s press release has “many inaccuracies,” Jonathan Malsin, owner of Beam Development, said in a statement. “Consistent with the hearing officer’s decision and city staff’s report, we meet the conditional use approval criteria and there is no legitimate land use argument against our application. We’ve reached out in good faith to MusicPortland many times and continue to welcome dialogue.”
The 62,000-square-foot Live Nation venue is designed to hold up to 3,500 people. The Live Nation team is in a race with Portland’s Monqui Presents and Los Angeles-based Anschutz Entertainment Group, which have joined to build a competing 4,250-seat music venue in the Lloyd Center Mall.
Beyond Live Nation’s alleged monopolistic behavior, Dunphy says the Live Nation site is a poor choice because concertgoers must cross freight train tracks to get to it. Nor is there adequate public transportation, so people will arrive by car, choking the inner Eastside with traffic.
“The chosen site for this venue is inherently problematic,” Dunphy said.
Dunphy, a former aide to City Commissioner Nick Fish, is running for City Council.