NORTH LAWNDALE – Riot Fest will take place in Chicago this year.
The popular music festival announced in June that this year’s event would move from its longtime location at Douglass Park in North Lawndale to the suburb of Bridgeview.
But the festival will indeed return to Douglass Park Sept. 20-22, the festival announced Wednesday at X. The event was also no longer listed on the website for SeatGeek Stadium, the announced location in Bridgeview, and a link for shuttles to the event was also no longer available as of 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Riot Fest organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday afternoon.
The reversal came two months after festival co-founder Mike Petryshyn, aka Riot Mike, harshly criticized the Chicago Park District in a text-only online video while announcing that Riot Fest would be leaving Chicago.
“A few weeks ago, I had enough,” he wrote. “I was sick of Riot Fest always being the least pityable victims. I was sick of playing their games. I was sick of watching something I love constantly be used to distract from their own internal deficiencies. It prevented us from providing the experience we deserve.”
“So it became obvious that a change was needed. Riot Fest will be leaving Douglass Park. And – let me say this as clearly as the azure sky in the dead of summer – our exodus is entirely due to the Chicago Park District. Their lack of interest in the community, you and us, ultimately left us with no other choice.”
In a statement Wednesday, it said the festival was welcome back. The district’s board will approve the festival plans at a meeting next month. Before Riot Fest moved to Bridgeview, the event met the permit requirements to be held in the city park, according to the park district.
Ald. Monique Scott (24th), who has been a vocal advocate for holding Riot Fest in her district, said in a statement that she is urging festival organizers to meet with neighbors and city stakeholders to negotiate an agreement that keeps the event in Douglass Park. Scott did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
“We are thrilled that Riot Fest is returning to the 24th Ward this year and are working toward a long-term partnership with the City of Chicago,” said Scott. “The return of Riot Fest is a win for our community and we look forward to the continued positive impact it will bring.”
Riot Fest headliners this year include Beck, Fall Out Boy, Pavement and Slayer. The festival will announce its daily lineup schedules at 10 a.m. Thursday, but the days the artists will perform will not change, just some of the times, according to a tweet from Riot Fest.
The festival’s initial move to Bridgeview drew ire from the Chicago Red Stars soccer team, which plays at SeatGeek Stadium and feared its game scheduled for Sept. 21 could be disrupted.
In a press release on Wednesday, the Red Stars confirmed that the game will now go ahead as planned. The team also announced that it will be partnering with Riot Fest at the music festival in September and will have a booth there.
The Red Stars will also host a “Riot Fest Night” with special merchandise at a game on November 3rd.
A spokesman for the town of Bridgeview declined to comment.
Neighbours and fans react
Neighbors and organizers who have long opposed Riot Fest are criticizing the practice of opening up public parkland for private use, bringing tens of thousands of fans, noise, traffic and trash to the area.
For years, North Lawndale neighbors have complained about disruption to surrounding businesses, damage to parks, displacement of youth sports teams, environmental damage, limited parking, people urinating and littering in surrounding streets, safety hazards caused by large crowds, and how increased traffic affects accessibility to surrounding hospitals.
Neighbor Susan Mullen, who lives a few blocks from the park, has long opposed Riot Fest’s arrival in the neighborhood and said she felt “blindsided” by the news of its return.
Riot Fest’s decisions felt “weird” and “theatrical,” she said.
“I had to read it a couple of times to make sure it was really true,” Mullen said. “The public obviously has no say. … It’s all about money. And that’s despite the fact that Riot Fest threw the Park District under the bus and blamed them for what happened (a few months ago).”
Mullen felt that Mayor Brandon Johnson and city and park officials were not listening to Douglass Park neighbors, she said.
“I feel powerless,” she said. “People are stunned and disgusted that our voices mean nothing.”
“This may seem like a small fight, but it’s a business and city government putting the health and safety of the neighborhood and access to health care at risk without giving us due process. So this should never have happened. (Riot Fest) should never have happened (in Douglass Park), and their complete disregard is disgusting.”
But there is also strong support for the festival. Some say it is an economic boon to the neighborhood. Some local business owners who have vendor contracts with Riot Fest said they appreciate the effort to involve neighbors in the festival and give their businesses additional visibility.
Local groups such as the Douglass Park Advisory Council, the North Lawndale Eagles football team, the Little Village Foundation, the Illinois Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Chicago West Community Music Center have also expressed their support.
Some fans praised the return on Wednesday.
Cruz Ruiz-Ayala, a Logan Square resident, said he had planned to go to Riot Fest before the move to the suburb of Bridgeview was announced. He supports the move back to the city, he said.
“There aren’t many festivals that cater to alternative groups,” Ruiz-Ayala said. “Riot Fest is one of those festivals that caters to people who don’t listen to regular pop music. … It gives them a space and an opportunity to really express themselves and enjoy the music they listen to on a daily basis.”
Tim Perez, who has been attending Riot Fest since 2012, said he was excited about returning to Douglass Park because there aren’t many music festivals like this one and it “brings so much money to the community,” he said.
Park District officials have repeatedly pointed out that private events generate profits that benefit the entire public park system. This year, the Park District announced an initiative to give 10 percent of permit fees collected from special events like Riot Fest – multi-day events with 3,000 or more attendees – back to the parks that host those events, in addition to park restoration fees.
Riot Fest typically attracts around 50,000 fans daily.
Criticism of the festival “ultimately aims to harm local businesses and deprive the city of one of its richest cultural traditions of the last 20 years,” Perez said. “I’m glad it’s back where it belongs.”
But other Riot Fest attendees took to social media to complain about the second change of venue, less than six weeks before the festival. Many had been looking for accommodation near Bridgeview.
“So we had already found accommodation, organized transportation, and were ready. Now we have to completely change our plans because it’s a month away and you’ve changed everything again?” complained @renegadenate on Twitter.
@srfnalaster11 had a similar comment: “So now my hotel is right next to the airport for no reason, lmao. Ugh”
The festival is already attempting to answer some questions related to the change in venue on its website. The “We’re Back” page states that while all ticket sales are final, parking passes and shuttle fees for the Bridgeview venue will be refunded.
A new shuttle service will be offered from the Midway Hotel Complex to Douglass Park.
Until August 31st, the festival also offers a special offer: If you bring a friend, you and your friend will each receive a 20% discount on the ticket price.
Riot Fest was founded in Chicago in 2005 and moved from Humboldt Park to Douglass Park in 2015 after opposition from neighbors.
North Lawndale had experienced friction around the festival for years, but tensions reached a boiling point in 2022 when two more festivals were added to the park’s summer schedule this year. From June to mid-September, parts of the park were closed for weeks as Lyrical Lemonade Summer Smash, Heatwave Music Festival and Riot Fest drew thousands of fans, most from outside the neighborhood.
Lyrical Lemonade and Heatwave moved the following year.
The backlash from West Siders forced the Park District to revise permitting procedures for private events in public parks.
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