TEMPE, AZ — Shady Park, a Tempe bar and live music venue, plans to continue to operate normally after a Maricopa County Superior Court judge denied a temporary restraining order aimed at requiring the venue to lower the volume of its music.
Some residents of the Mirabella at ASU, a retirement community on Arizona State University campus, filed a lawsuit against Shady Park after complaining about the music levels at the venue. Shady Park, at 26 E. University Drive, east of Mill Avenue, is directly across the street from the Mirabella, which opened during the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, Shady Park representatives said despite several calls for noise complaints to the city of Tempe from Mirabella residents, the venue has never received a citation for a noise violation. Scott Zwillinger, partner at Zwillinger Wulkan, representing the owner of Shady Park, said police have been called several times, and have measured noise levels around the venue and inside the residence of one person who complained, and did not issue a citation.
Zwillinger said his client has always been open to any solutions that would help address concerns without lowering the quality of the music at the venue. Scott Price, the owner of Shady Park, has already paid to construct a canopy over the concert area to contain the sound more effectively.
The suit against the venue sets a dangerous tone for other downtown Tempe businesses, including many others that are oriented around nightlife and live music, Zwillinger said.
