Forest Hills Stadium‘s legal battle with the community’s homeowners association is one step closer to resolution.
On Oct. 21, Justice Joseph J. Esposito dismissed five of seven causes that the Forest Hills Gardens Corporation (FHGC) alleged in a 2023 lawsuit filed against the The West Side Tennis Club, which owns the stadium, in New York Supreme Court – Queens County. The lawsuit seeks to shut down the summer concert program at the former site of the U.S. Open, which is run by respected live-music veteran Mike Luba.
Among the causes of action dismissed by Judge Esposito: claims that the concert series was a violation of the tennis club’s contract with the FHGC, which owns the streets, sidewalks and common areas of Forest Hills Gardens, and represents approximately 900 property owners (including the club); that the stadium was a zoning violation and that the club had unjustly profited from the stadium’s growing success. It hosted a single concert when it re-opened in 2013; in 2024, that number totaled approximately 30, including shows by Neil Young and Crazy Horse, The National, The War on Drugs, Khruangbin, Tiësto, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard and Pitbull. And in early June, Hozier sold out four nights — a first in the stadium’s 101-year history.
Hozier performs at Forest Hills Stadium on June 4, 2024 in Queens, NY.
Bryan Kwon
Judge Esposito dismissed all but FHGC’s public and private nuisance claims, but he did not find in FHGC’s favor on the merits of the nuisance claims. He merely held that they had stated a claim sufficient to survive the motion to dismiss, which they now must prove through discovery. (A future court date has not been set.)
In a statement, Forest Hills Stadium’s attorney Akiva Shapiro said, “Forest Hills Stadium, an iconic and popular venue that anchors New York’s vibrant live music scene, has poured tremendous resources into being a good neighbor. We are gratified that the Court dismissed the vast majority of the claims and made clear that concerts at the Stadium are authorized under the relevant legal documents. We are confident that the remaining claims will also be dismissed.”
The Forest Hills Gardens Corp’s attorney Christopher Rizzo also responded to the decision in a statement: “Judge Esposito denied the [West Side Tennis] Club’s efforts to dismiss FHGC’s May 16, 2023 complaint, preserved important claims and dismissed others. We are pleased the judge has continued to recognize the serious nuisance created through noise code violations, FHGC’s loss of control of its indisputably private streets, trespass and other land-use harms. FHGC will continue to press forward in trial court. On claims that were dismissed, FHGC will consider its appeal options.”
Rizzo added: “As the court stated: ‘[FHGC] has proffered sufficient evidence that it suffers special injury from the loss of control of its private streets/sidewalks, the attendant financial costs to maintain those streets in light of the concerts and the large-scale pedestrian trespass that results from the events…[FHGC] succeeded in establishing public nuisance…as well as the documented evidence on noise levels from the stadium.”