Residents challenge Musik i Lejet expansion at packed meeting

About 700 residents attended a public meeting on the proposed expansion of Musik i Lejet, DR reported. The meeting was held at Helsinge Hall and organised by the Gribskov municipal council.

Musik i Lejet has applied to expand its three summer festival days into events spread across 19 days a year at Vejby Camping, a camping site where the festival is held. The programme could include music, events and company parties.

The council invited residents to take part early in the process and provide feedback before deciding whether Vejby Camping should be expanded.

Festival co-founder Andreas Grauengaard presented the plans and acknowledged the controversy surrounding them.

“Our proposal has caused fierce debate. We are sorry about that,” he said.

The discussion became heated as soon as the presentation ended. One audience member shouted: “There is no dialogue, for fuck’s sake.”

Most of the concerns raised at the meeting involved potentially harmful noise from concerts, heavy traffic, late garden parties and falling property values. A doctor among the participants argued that noise from concerts and heavy transport could be harmful to health.

Residents discussed the plans at tables of six, with opposition and concerns dominating the debate.

Politicians will now consider the objections and proposals from the meeting before the Gribskov municipal council makes a final decision on Musik i Lejet’s application and whether the local plan should be amended or maintained.