7 Schumer-supported Pool Parties this year - lineup soon?

A ‘Pool Party’ in 2009 (more by Bao Nguyen)

By [2009] summer’s end, frustrated parks officials were in talks with other promoters. But Mr. Schumer halted those talks, said Steve Hindy, chairman of the Open Space Alliance.

“Schumer was insisting that Jelly be part of the concerts series for this year, that there be no discussion with other people,” said Mr. Hindy, who is also president of the Brooklyn Brewery. Beer sales at the concerts, by Brooklyn Brewery and Heineken, Mr. Hindy said, will support the alliance, whose mission is to maintain and create public parkland around Williamsburg and Greenpoint.

According to a number of people with knowledge of the situation, some of whom spoke only anonymously, out of fear of riling the senator, the negotiations were long and contentious. In a series of statements, Mr. Schumer said he was “pressing officials” to save the concerts, and behind the scenes did just that, convening heated meetings and dispatching aides to mediate contract discussions. Various elected and appointed officials, including Adrian Benepe, the city parks commissioner, were involved…

After months of talks, Jelly signed a contract last week for seven free Sunday concerts in East River State Park, beginning on July 11. In response to questions about its discussions with parks officials, Ms. Hooper and Mr. Kane of Jelly thanked Mr. Schumer for his help and said:

“As is always going to be the case when there are a number of entities working together under the same roof, disagreements are bound to arise. As a small business, this has not been an easy road to walk down.”[New York Times]

The article linked above highlights Chuck Schumer’s considerable role in organizing the still-unannounced Jelly NYC Pool Parties at the Williamsburg Waterfront in 2010. Their return has been confirmed for a while (with minimal details), though the number of shows was 8 before.

Paid shows at the park – benefits for the free shows, put on by OSA and AEG – are scheduled throughout the summer. The first of those is Band of Horses with Grizzly Bear and Karen Elson on Sunday, June 20th. The last show of the 2010 season is currently Belle & Sebastian on September 30th.