''Music festivals like this should not be held in high-density residential areas... I would have loved one of the councillors to come around and sit on my deck.''
He said he was not one of the 56 noise complaints received by the council, saying he was aware of how other avenues residents felt about the festival that ran from noon to 10.30pm on Saturday and noon to 10pm on Sunday.
Fifth Ave resident Ian Stevenson who lived 1.7km from the festival said a council official turned up at his house around 5pm on Saturday and measured the volume at 69 decibels - one decibel below the level permitted by council noise rules.
Although he had not heard whether One Love kept within its limit, judging by his 69 decibels, he suspected the level would have been exceeded in neighbourhoods closer to The Domain.
Stevenson said, in his view, the noise levels over the weekend exceeded previous One Love festivals. This surprised him because last year there had been a recommendation from the council to direct the speakers more in the direction of the crowd.
He said the time he was put on hold over the phone to make his complaints went from four or five minutes on Saturday afternoon to about 10 minutes in the early evening.
Stevenson said the music was as clear as a bell at Pak'nSave and could be heard quite clearly out to 15th and 18th Aves.
It was not the council's job to ensure the concert continued no matter the consequences but to ensure compliance on a timely basis. ''Afterwards is not good enough,'' he said of the post-event review.
Deputy Mayor Kelvin Clout said the festival's noise investigation was expected to be completed mid-March. One Love's resource consent permitted higher noise levels at residential boundaries than normal.
Tauranga Mayor Greg Brownless said he personally received one complaint and that was from a person who suggested the stage should be on the other side of the venue, so it faced towards the port and Mount Maunganui industrial area.
He said people had different tolerances to noise and no matter what it was, some would find it excessive while others were quite satisfied. ''Somewhere in the middle, we should be able to find a happy medium.''
Brownless said that initial findings were that One Love kept within the parameters of its consent. He suspected some complaints were exacerbated by the style of music.
One Love music festival director and promoter Pato Alvarez did not respond by deadline to an invitation to comment on noise levels.
The council's strategic and city events manager Gareth Wallis said no complaints were received for the Jet Sprints held at Baypark Stadium on Saturday night.
One Love festival noise complaints last weekend
Number of complaints: 56
Time received: 10am Saturday to 11pm Sunday
Householders: Complaints received from 32 addresses.
Source: Tauranga City Council
