PITTSBURGH — Lizzy Sidwell and her sister no longer have Jam on Walnut in their summer plans.
Just this week, the Shadyside Chamber of Commerce announced the annual Jam on Walnut music festival won’t be happening this year.
One of the reasons they gave is the growing concern around community safety, cleanliness and underage drinking.
According to Pittsburgh City Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, last year, hundreds of teenagers showed up and were drinking in the parking lots surrounding Walnut Street.
“What we were experiencing outside of the Jam on Walnut perimeter, in the parking lots outside of Walnut, was essentially a teen takeover. People would hear about it from all over the county and know that this is a place where you can both hear music from outside of the jam and have a little party,” Strassburger said.
Earlier this year, she was a part of a broader discussion about how there would need to be safety changes if the event went on this summer.
“If the organizers chose to hold it again this year, we would want to try a test run. Plan an event, perhaps making it an all-ages event and ending early,” she added.
But the event organizers, which are local nonprofits, also said they didn’t have the capacity to put on the event.
Instead, they decided to have a Summer Music Series that is more of a family event, and will be in the afternoon, instead of a nighttime music festival.
Strassburger hopes the Shadyside summer staple will eventually return.
“It’s a real shame on the one hand because we know that, in the past, when it first started, neighbors would walk down the street and really enjoy it,” Strassburger said.
The first Summer Music Series event will be on June 13 from 3-6 p.m.
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