49ers At Odds With Santa Clara

All is not well in Santa Clara, Calif., as the 49ers and Live Nation recently expressed frustration with the city’s refusal to accommodate larger events with exemptions from the local curfew.

AP Photo / Tony Avelar – Broncos 49ers Santa Clara
The Denver Broncos visit the San Francisco 49ers’ new digs, Levi’s Stadium, Aug. 17. Many of the best seats in the house were empty by the third quarter, presumably because the fans used to blustery Candlestick Park were unaccustomed to sunny Santa Clara.

The Santa Clara City Council voted 4-3 at an Aug. 24 meeting to deny a request to extend the 10 p.m. curfew by one hour for an upcoming Coldplay concert at Levi’s stadium, The Mercury News reported. 

The Coldplay show is currently the only gig on the books for Levi’s Stadium as it prepares to host the 49ers through the 2017-18 season. 

“It will be increasingly difficult for us to book events here with the curfew,” Live Nation COO Matt Prieshoff said at the meeting. “The city diminishes our opportunity to book events here and the artists’ enthusiasm.”

When U2 played after the curfew earlier this year the city reportedly only penalized the hosts with a $1,000 fine. U2 and Beyoncé both played on weeknights and both “blew past” the 10 p.m. curfew after being denied extensions, the paper said. The concerts netted the city $1.6 million in revenue that could be used for services like police, fire and libraries, according to 49ers President Al Guido.

Rhetoric from Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor and other frustrated neighbors conveys a resistance to giving the stadium free reign to host events as needed.

“The city made promises to our north side residents,” Gillmor said at the meeting. “The law is there for a reason. We all agreed to it. We told the community this would happen, and I’m not ready to change that.”

Although words and small fines seem to be the only barriers to hosting more shows at the stadium, Guido said the city’s resistance is counterproductive.

“We won’t be able to book concerts; there is no question,” he said at the meeting. “If the concerts don’t come, it will negatively impact the city. The concerts are forecasted to make $100 million for the city during the term of this lease and they’re throwing that business away.”

The meeting also saw the council accept an audit from Harvey M. Rose Associates showing that the Stadium Authority hadn’t fully complied with terms approved by voters in 2010 through Measure J. The audit also showed that the city was still owed $718,803 in parking fees and the city was still awaiting $114,781 in reimbursement during the audit period.

Legal counsel for the 49ers responded with a statement claiming that the report “will only serve to further confuse the Board and the public with erroneous information, incomplete and out of context half-truths, and outright misrepresentations.” 

The Niners claim Harvey Rose is “neither a law firm or certified public accounting firm qualified to perform an audit or give legal advice,” that Harvey Rose refused to work with the team to procure accurate information in a manner fair to both parties, and that the team has already overpaid for parking by $1 million.

The 49ers filed a claim against the city the same day of the meeting, The Mercury News reported.