Hangout Music Fest 2022 construction has started in and around The Hangout, but residents and visitors will soon also see road, beach and parking lot closures.

Officials with Hangout have also put into place several changes to try to mitigate the festival’s effects on residents living near the Gulf Place Beach area.

After the 2019 Hangout Music Festival, the last time it was put on because of COVID-19, residents expressed displeasure over the loud music and bass that pounded their homes over the festival weekend. Complaints also included topics of litter, lewd behavior from festival goers and illegal parking.

Gulf Shores City Council encouraged festival organizers to address the issues in the future or risk the denial of future event permits.
Organizers listened and have implemented programs and changes for this year’s event.

“The Hangout Festival has spent a lot of time working on improvements to the event to mitigate the impact to the residents,” said Reeves Price, festival director. “The main areas of focus have been the creation of the Hangout Ambassador Program and attention to the management of the sound coming from the festival.”

During council’s March 21 work session, Grant Brown, Gulf Shores spokesman and the city’s recreational and cultural affairs director, presented the public assembly permit. The application outlined changes and programs Hangout organizers have in place to address residents’ concerns. The changes include:

• The festival will use a professional sound company to control all noise and vibrations and implement sound limits on stages.
• Two sound systems will be pointed south toward the water.
• A professional waste management company will be responsible for waste removal and recycling. They will also work with the Gulf Shores Public Works department to remove waste from the beaches and various properties occupied by the festival each night.

Hangout Music Fest’s new ambassador program will place event staff throughout neighboring areas to deter illegal parking, litter and lewd behavior. They will also provide support and resources to the community.

“These ambassadors will be an extra set of eyes and hands for the festival, able to respond to community members concerns and do various things such as remind patrons where they are allowed to park, deter lewd behavior and deter and pick up litter,” Price said.
City council approved the festival’s public assembly permit during their March 28 regular council meeting.

Hangout Music Fest related closures

Monday, May 9

• East Gulf Place Parking lot closed through May 25

Monday, May 16

• Public beach access at Gulf Place closes

Tuesday, May 17

• Highway 59 south of West 1st Avenue and Highway 182/Beach Boulevard between West 2nd Street and East 2nd Street will be closed to all vehicular and pedestrian traffic beginning at 4:30 p.m.
• Access to West Beach is available through Windmill Ridge Road or by taking West 1st Avenue to West 3rd Street.
• Access to Orange Beach is available through the Gulf State Park, Canal Road or by taking East 1st Avenue to East 2nd Street, East 3rd Street or East 4th Street.

Friday, May 20

• Beginning at 4:30 p.m., traffic flow on East 1st Avenue and East 2nd Avenue will be modified to a one-way-only route to help accommodate heavy pedestrian traffic. Two-way traffic flow on East 1st, East 2nd, East 3rd Street and East 4th Street will remain in place. The public is advised to use the traffic flow map and directional signage posted in these areas indicating proper traffic flow during this time.

Monday, May 23

• Beginning at 6 a.m., Highway 59 and Highway 182/Beach Boulevard will temporarily reopen to allow for existing traffic until noon.

Tuesday, May 24

• Normal traffic conditions resume.

Public beach access

• Public beach access points at West 4th Street, West 5th Street, West 6th Street, West 10th Street, West 12th Street, West 13th street, Little Lagoon Pass and the Gulf State Park will remain open throughout the festival. All residents and visitors are encouraged to use these public beach access points during this time.
• Public beach parking and access points will return to normal use Thursday, May 26.

Know before you go

This year’s event will be cashless, so bring a credit or debit card and “tap to pay” solutions. There will be “cash to card” kiosks inside the festival where people can trade cash for a visa debit card if they do not have a credit or debit card.

Use the shuttle program to get to and from the festival.

Be respectful to the community and remember to “leave only footprints.”