Solana Beach suing Del Mar Fairgrounds over KAABOO music festival

SOLANA BEACH, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — The music festival KAABOO is facing another lawsuit ahead of its long-anticipated return this September at the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

The city of Solana Beach has filed a lawsuit against the Del Mar Fairgrounds for its approval of the multi-day festival, claiming its governing board did not adequately take into consideration the event’s environmental impacts.

The suit claims the board for the fairgrounds, which straddles both Del Mar and Solana Beach, overlooked things like increased air pollution, public safety concerns and traffic among other considerations heading into KAABOO’s first event since 2019.

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Residents near the Del Mar Fairgrounds FOX 5 spoke with had mixed feelings about Solana Beach’s suit. Some said they did not mind the things the city was concerned about, since they know ahead of time what events are coming up.

“I like hearing the music once in a while. I like hearing the races once in a while. I like hearing the fairgrounds once in a while,” said Susan Simonson, a Solana Beach resident who has lived across from the Del Mar Fairground for 35 years.

Simonson said she disagrees with the city of Solana Beach’s legal action against the fairgrounds over environmental concerns regarding KAABOO.

“We chose to live here. We knew we were across the street from the fairgrounds and that is what’s going to happen,” Simonson said.

This is not the first legal challenge KAABOO has faced during its short run at the fairgrounds between 2015 and 2019. A previous was brought before a planned move to Petco Park after 2019, however, the COVID-19 pandemic and other logistical considerations put it on hold.

It was announced last year that the event would be making its long anticipated return at its previous home in fall 2024.

“I’m excited to have things start to come in and bring the community together. I think people being out and about is really fun, and it makes it a little more lively,” said Mcelle Kelley, who similarly lives across from the Del Mar Fairgrounds.

Kelley has lived across the Fairgrounds for a year and a half. She said the city’s noise concern is minimal when compared to music coming into her home.

“Sometimes, it can be fun to have a little concert in your backyard,”  Kelley said.

The Del Mar Fairgrounds declined to comment on the lawsuit from the city of Solana Beach when FOX 5 reached out, instead offering the following statement:

“We strive to be a good neighbor, and we have engaged in good-faith conversations about KAABOO with the City of Solana Beach for months. We have worked closely with the festival’s organizers to address the City’s concerns in the contract for this event.”

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Neighbors say they now hope the city’s concerns get resolved, and the music festival can proceed as planned.

“Even during the fairgrounds, fair season they have those concerts over there, we love, we love it,” Simonson said.

It is unclear if this latest lawsuit will delay the festival past September. The city of Solana Beach is asking a judge to “set aside” the contract between the Fairgrounds and KAABOO until an environmental review is done.

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