Business owners disappointed about losing extra revenue due to canceled Pleasantville Music Festival

For the second year in a row, restaurant owner Michael Ferrara says he will be losing out on a lot of extra business that comes with having the Pleasantville Music Festival right in his backyard. 




News 12 Staff

Apr 20, 2021, 9:46 PM

Updated 1,273 days ago

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Music lovers are not the only ones feeling let down that the Pleasantville Music Festival has been canceled again this year - local businesses that rely on the extra revenue generated by the event are also disappointed.
For the second year in a row, restaurant owner Michael Ferrara says he will be losing out on a lot of extra business that comes with having the Pleasantville Music Festival right in his backyard. 




"People make reservations in advance knowing that the music festival is being aired right across the street...This is prime real estate," he says. "I'm sure we'll lose 10% of our sales for a normal event on the Pleasantville Music Festival."
Festival organizers announced the popular annual music festival that was slated for July 10 at Parkway Field in Pleasantville would be canceled due to the state's capacity limitations for large-scale events during a pandemic.
Organizers say 5,000 music lovers usually converge there the day of the festival - with security, staff, vendors and the musicians making up another 2,000 people.
Current state guidelines would only allow a maximum of 500 people total - a losing proposition for organizers and local businesses.



The owner of Jean Jacques Restaurant says it would lose 10-15% of extra business that would come on the day of the festival.

"We're on the main path, so people stop in and grab coffee and drinks. You know, grab and go, they'll stop in for a bite," says the owner.
The possibility of moving the festival later in the year is being explored.


If it doesn't happen, festival goers and businesses will have to wait until 2022.
In 2019, the Pleasantville music festival celebrated 15 years of of rocking out music fans across the Hudson Valley.