Lawsuit Dismissed: Live Music Wins In Forest Hills

One fire has been put out in the fight between operators of New York City’s Forest Hills Stadium and a group of local citizens. A Queens Supreme Court judge dismissed a lawsuit filed against operators The West Side Tennis Club by the Concerned Citizens of Forest Hills alleging the venue’s use as a live music venue creates a public nuisance.

Forest Hills Stadium was built in 1923. Originally designed as the home of the U.S. Open tennis tournament, the 13,000-capacity venue began hosting concerts in the 1960’s with Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones and Frank Sinatra among those who performed at Forest Hills Stadium then. Renovations were completed in 2013 to bring the stadium back to life as a live music venue and has welcomed hundreds of concerts since. Hozier, Goose, Neil Young & Crazy Horse, The Avett Brothers and Pixies have each played the stadium so far this summer and King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard will present a pair of marathon concerts in Forest Hills tonight and tomorrow.

While the stadium is undergoing a renaissance when it comes to live music, some area residents are bothered by the disruption they feel the venue causes. Several lawsuits have been filed alleging the concert venue has affected their quality of life. The Concerned Citizens of Forest Hills launched a lawsuit late last year with plaintiffs pointing out the “unbearably loud” noise that they heard emanating from the stadium.

Queens Supreme Court Justice Robert Caloras ruled the Concerned Citizens of Forest Hills didn’t have standing to sue the stadium. He also found that the group didn’t prove they suffered more harm than the community as a whole in his dismissal of the suit. Caloras wrote the Concerned Citizens “failed to adequately plead their private nuisance claim.”

“The entire Forest Hills Stadium team is delighted and grateful to the court for today’s decision. We are also heartened by the outpouring of love from the Forest Hills community, our neighbors and the more than 25,000 people who have signed a petition to support the Stadium,” read a statement from Gibson Dunn’s Akiva Shapiro, a law firm hired by the West Side Tennis Club.

“We remain committed to thoughtfully preserving a cultural icon and delivering the best possible experience inside and outside of the Stadium,” added Shapiro. “While this does not mean the end of the Stadium’s legal challenges, we are hopeful that the Stadium’s rights will soon be fully vindicated in the remaining lawsuits as well.”

Many local businesses and residents support the venue. Over 25,000 have signed a Change.org petition rallying behind Forest Hills Stadium. Another suit brought against the stadium by Forest Hills Gardens Corporation remains unresolved.