Seaview wastewater treatment plant. Photo: Google Maps
Juicy Fest's organisers say Wellington's Hutt Park is odour free in time for the opening of the music festival on Friday.
This week, Wellington Water fast-tracked a biofilter replacement at the nearby Seaview Waste Water Plant after months of noxious smells, which resulted in its owners being fined more than $40,000.
Festival spokesperson Kristin Ralph said the grounds were now stench free, and nearly 15,000 concert goers expected at Friday's show in Hutt Park.
A northerly wind was whisking away any trace of stench of the plant adjacent to the festival's site, she said.
Hutt City Council had kept organisers in the loop about efforts to address the smells emanating from the plant, Ralph said.
Wellington Water has fast-tracked a biofilter replacement at the nearby Seaview Waste Water Plant after months of noxious smells.
Ralph said concerns about the smells had done little to quell ticket sales.
"We're pretty stoked that it isn't a major issue at all today. We did look at the wind as well and we're expecting northerlies which would've blown the smell away if their was a smell in the area but everything is good," Ralph said.
Ralph said festival goers had begun queuing soon after 9am with gates due to open at midday.
"There's loads of people lined up already. It is pretty busy out there at the moment. The staff are all there waiting to let them in. The stage is up, the artists have come in for sound checks so all ready," Ralph said.
The travelling festival was at its second stop of four dates across the country. Ralph said Wednesday's show in Christchurch had a great vibe and the artists were keen to take some time out from their busy schedule to see the sights about the country.
"[We're] very stoked. The South Island had a really good energy about them so we're very keen to see what the North Island has to bring and so are the artists," Ralph said.
On Thursday, nearby Gracefield resident Robert Wills said he was pleased the biofilter fix had been made, but he questioned how it had been done so quickly.
Wills said Friday morning's wind was blowing in the right direction to draw any smells away from the festival and his home, but he was still worried a wind change could impact concertgoers.
"The concern that I have [is that] for those party-goers it will leave a bad mark for the reputation of the Hutt and the Greater Wellington area as being a place that stinks," he said.
He welcomed the festival and had no problem with the volume levels from soundchecks ahead of the show, but he said would be taking his kids out of the area for the day as the festival's hip hop sounds were not his "cup of tea".
Lower Hutt mayor Campbell Barry on Thursday told Morning Report the smell would not give the international acts a bad impression of Lower Hutt.
Barry said the stench over Seaview had been a problem for more than a decade.
"My focus now is the longer term solution to fix the smell, which does get bad at points quite often still. So that's not going to stop completely. But of course, how bad it's got in the last few months shouldn't happen again."
T-Pain and Ashanti would top a bill of 11 acts set to begin after midday and running until 10pm.
Hip-hop artist The Game, who was scheduled to attend, has reportedly dropped out at the last minute, other media are reporting.
