Forest Hills Stadium racks up noise violations during music festival
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Forest Hills Stadium racked up noise violations during the All Things Go music festival over the weekend, which ended abruptly after an artist was cut off due to the stadium’s curfew. Photo via Forest Hills Stadium/Facebook
By Ryan Schwach
Forest Hills Stadium violated the city’s noise laws multiple times during the three-day music festival All Things Go over the weekend, which ended in a disaster when the venue abruptly cut off the festival’s headliner before the end of her set.
The stadium, which has been in an ongoing legal battle over noise and crowds with local residents, received noise violations from the city Department of Environmental Protection each day of the three-day festival, which included performances from Lucy Dacus, Djo and Doechii.
According to the DEP, the stadium received violations for each day of the festival, bringing its total number of violations in 2025 to nine.
Summonses will be served in the coming weeks, according to an agency spokesperson.
Even worse for the venue, All Things Go, which ran from Friday, Sept. 26, to Sunday, Sept. 28, came to a sudden end on Sunday night when stadium staff cut off singer-songwriter Clairo in the middle of her act because the stadium hit its 10 p.m. curfew.
“The festival cut us off, no idea why,” the artist posted on social media on Sunday night minutes after 10 p.m. “Really sad we couldn’t do our big finish, more surprised they cut my mic mid-song. Sad honestly doesn’t even explain it - I’m sorry.”
The singer also said on social media the stadium didn’t tell her about the noise ordinance or the curfew. Videos on social media show concert employees speaking to a visibly confused Clairo, who went to the front of the stage and apologized to the audience.
Fans took to social media to comment and complain about the concert being stopped early.
“This was so f–ed up they literally cut her off mid-song which is the most disrespectful thing you can do to a musician,” one poster wrote on X.
In a statement, stadium spokesperson Grace Smoker said the artist was aware of the situation.
“Our top priority is being a good neighbor, and [Sunday night] was no exception,” Smoker said. “We turned off the sound system promptly at 10 p.m. in accordance with our curfew. The artist's team was fully notified of this policy beforehand and again during the set.”
Sound issues at the stadium were not exclusive to this weekend’s festival.
Other noise violations obtained by the Eagle came on Aug. 1 and Aug. 2 when King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard performed, on Aug. 13 when The Black Keys played and on Sept. 5 when Above & Beyond brought their North American tour to Queens.
They were also given violations for two of pop star Chappell Roan’s concerts on Sept. 20 and Sept. 23.
DEP said that agency inspectors attended 12 concerts so far this season, nine of which resulted in violations.
In all of 2024, DEP conducted 22 inspections and issued 10 violations.
In a statement, Forest Hills Stadium said that they have yet to receive the violations from the festival, and argued that the DEP is holding them to the wrong standard.
“We know that time after time this agency’s inspectors have applied the wrong standard to our venue – using a code intended for bars and restaurants operating without a curfew instead of concert venues,” said Smoker. “We’ve invested in major new sound systems that have drastically reduced the amount of sound from the stage and speakers outside the stadium, and we have not violated the sound code our permits are connected to.”
Stadium operators argue that the permit given to them by the NYPD sets their sound limits at 75 decibels.
However, the DEP also measures the venue against the regulations for general commercial establishments, which is where the stadium was cited for violations.
The famous Forest Hills Stadium in Queens had nine noise violations this summer season, and has continued to face issues with locals. Eagle file photo by Ryan Schwach
According to the city’s noise code, “any commercial establishment or enterprise,” that plays music should not exceed 42 decibels inside nearby residences.
One of the recent non-All Things Go violations from the Chappell Roan concert on Sept. 20 said that inspectors in a nearby home clocked the sound levels at 55 decibels.
Locals, who have long said the stadium’s concert noise and crowds are a detriment to their way of life, said that this past weekend was just more of the same.
“We got a lot of complaints from residents,” said Matthew Mandell, a volunteer legal chair for Forest Hills Gardens Corporation, a private neighborhood where the stadium resides.
The neighborhood remains locked in an ongoing lawsuit against the stadium.
“The longer the city fails to hold them accountable, the more they're constantly pushing limits,” Mandell said.
For years, locals have complained that sound from the stadium often shakes their windows, and that crowds create a nuisance and a dangerous environment for the community.
Locals said they weren't willing to give the stadium credit for cutting off the festival at the curfew time on Sunday night after three days of shows.
“They've been flagrantly violating the noise code all season,” said Andy Court, a Forest Hills resident who led some of the opposition to the stadium. “They want to make themselves out like they're heroes because they stopped at 10, which is the city law. In that one respect, they followed the city law, give me a break.”
The lawsuit from Forest Hills Gardens Corporation is currently on appeal, but a court ruling last year forced the venue to appoint an independent sound monitor to report on stadium sound levels.
The summer concert season at Forest Hills Stadium was briefly in doubt going into the season after the city and NYPD denied the stadium crucial permitting.
However, in April, the stadium brokered a deal with Queens Borough President Donovan Richards that cleared the way for music this summer.
Music at the venue continues into the fall. The next show is Shawn Mendes, who performs on Friday, Oct. 3.
