Beacon, New York Denies Permission for Beloved Local Festival

In a shocking decision, the City of Beacon has denied permission for a local festival that has been held at Riverfront Park since 2013.

Due to a new change in policy, the City of Beacon has decided to ban all ticketed events at Riverfront Park. Events at the park have been drawing tourism to Beacon for over a decade, contributing to the city's economic success and growth.

Festival Denied Permit From City of Beacon

One event that's been held at Riverfront Park since before Beacon became "Brooklyn North" is the extremely popular Hudson River Craft Beer Festival. The local event features hundreds of beers from craft brewers, live music, local vendors and a selection of food trucks from all over the Hudson Valley. The festival (hosted by Townsquare Media, owner of this publication) has been held at the park for over a decade. Riverfront Park's proximity to the Metro North train station has been a convenient way for local attendees to enjoy the festival while responsibly traveling home.

Organizers of the Hudson River Craft Beer Festival received a letter from Mark Price, the director of the City of Beacon Recreation Department, saying permission for this year's festival has been denied. In the correspondence, Price says the city "no longer see(s) a need to encourage commerce with special events in (the) parks", citing the fact that the Beacon now has enough tourism.

Apparently, now that Beacon has become a popular tourist destination for out-of-town visitors, locally run events have become unnecessary. Price says that although the Hudson River Craft Beer Festival has always been a "positive experience", the city has made the decision to only allow free community events moving forward.

The director also blames a short-staffed police department for not being able to cover any for-profit events in the park. It's unclear why the City of Beacon believes police coverage for ticketed events would be any different than for free community events or how the police situation this year is any different than it has been over the past decade.

Hudson River Craft Beer Festival Forced to Move

While Beacon's rejection of the event is disappointing, Townsquare Promotions and Live Events Manager, Anthony Verano, says that the Hudson River Craft Beer Festival has already secured a new location. The event will now be held at People's Waterfront Park in Newburgh on September 28, 2024. Located almost directly across the river from the former location, the park offers beautiful views of the Hudson River, assuring the same experience attendees expect from the annual festival.

Verano also says that he is working to arrange ferry access on the day of the festival so those who rely on Metro-North to visit the Hudson Valley Craft Beer Festival can still safely get home.

More details on the Hudson River Craft Beer Festival and ticketing information will be released later this summer.