Rock Promoter Gets 2nd Chance at Carlsbad Gigs

CARLSBAD — Rock promoter Bill Silva has been given a reprieve by city officials of Carlsbad, who last week yanked his conditional-use permit to produce pop concerts at Sammis Pavilion.

Carlsbad City Manager Ray Patchett said city officials were upset over security and traffic problems at the Silva-promoted Bob Dylan concert Aug. 6 and at the recommendation of Charles Grimm, Carlsbad’s assistant planning director, that Patchett revoke Silva’s permit. This week, Patchett said the city decided to give Silva another chance if he can show that he has solved the problems.

“I told him . . . that if he can solve all those problems and put the police chief, the fire chief and the traffic engineers in a position to recommend approval, I would consider letting him do more shows, each one on a conditional basis,” Patchett said.

Silva’s next scheduled concert at the 7,000-capacity outdoor facility in the Batiquitos Lagoon Educational Park is an Oct. 1 appearance by jazz singer Basia.

Many of the problems at the Dylan show, Silva’s first production at Sammis Pavilion, stemmed from permit violations, according to Carlsbad police.

In an Aug. 8 memo to Carlsbad Police Chief Bob Vales, traffic Sgt. Howard Carpenter attributed the traffic jams on Interstate 5 and Avenida Encinas--the latter blocking the entrance to a mobile-home park for half an hour--to inadequate parking, a lack of signs directing motorists to the concert site and a crowd that exceeded the city-imposed limit of 7,000.

In his memo, Carpenter said Silva provided only 57 of the required 70 security officers, adding that “security personnel were spread very thin and could not respond to specific problem areas.”

Carpenter also accused Silva of failing to establish a city-approved security command post equipped with telephones and two-way radio gear.

“During one incident involving a fight between security and an attendee,” Carpenter wrote, “the only way we knew about it was we heard someone yelling, ‘Police.’ ”

Silva could not be reached for comment, but in an Aug. 31 letter to Grimm and Patchett, the promoter termed Carpenter’s memo “very frustrating and disturbing to me.” He disputed the traffic sergeant’s contention that the crowd size at the Dylan show exceeded 7,000, and rejected Carpenter’s claim that attendance figures were “intentionally and knowingly misrepresented.”

“I am insulted that Sgt. Carpenter would label me a liar,” Silva wrote.

Silva also refused to take blame for the illegal parking that occurred on Avenida Encinas, calling that “a police function.” He said Sammis Pavilion officials had assured him that the parking lot could hold 3,000 cars, “which it obviously cannot.”

Patchett agreed with Carpenter’s recommendation, however, and decided first to revoke Silva’s permit, then, in effect, to put him on probation.

“I think he can solve all those problems,” Patchett said, “but whether he will, I don’t know--that’s really his decision.”

John Nelson, an associate of Silva’s, said the problems will be solved by the next concert.

The Sammis Pavilion parking lot is being doubled in size to accommodate more than 2,000 vehicles, Nelson said. Attendance at future shows will be limited to 4,000, well under the 7,000 allowed by the city. Signs will be put up to direct concert-bound motorists to the site. Security will be beefed up to steer them to the parking lot and away from the no-parking zone along Avenida Encinas.

He said a security command post will also be established, complete with telephones and two-way radio gear--which is what city officials say they had ordered for the Dylan concert.

“What the whole thing boils down to is that we had too many people and not enough parking or security,” Nelson said. “What we propose to do should take care of all the problems, and I hope that, when the city sees our plans, they will decide to let us continue to bring live music to Carlsbad.”