REDHILL'S annual music festival will go ahead this summer despite ongoing complaints from those living nearby over noise and vandalism.
Redfest will return to Robins Cook Farm in South Nutfield for the seventh time in July, after Reigate and Banstead Borough Council's licensing sub-committee granted the event a licence.
However, councillors stipulated that live and recorded music must be cut off by 11pm and said alcohol sales must finish at 2am.
Thousands of festival-goers are expected to descend on the rural site in Kings Mill Lane on Friday, July 26 and Saturday, July 27. The festival has a maximum capacity for 4,999 people and last year attracted 2,800. Organiser Matt Nichols told Monday's hearing: "There is always going to be a compromise between providing enjoyable entertainment for festival-goers and not disturbing residents nearby.
"It is two days of the year. It brings a lot of pleasure to the young people of the area and is a well-managed event they can attend safely."
But four residents, chairman of Salfords and Sidlow Parish Council David Brown, and ward councillor Rita Renton spoke out against the festival.
Robin Rayfield, who farms land bordering the festival fields, branded the event "a weekend of hell".
He told the committee: "Last year was the worst of the six years we have had.
"There were bottles in all my crops, the fences were damaged, there were people everywhere and there was no security."
Another festival neighbour, Jan Cooke, said the mix of extra cars, pedestrians and alcohol was a potentially lethal mix in rural Kings Mill Lane, and complained about noise from last year's event.
"It was physically horrible, the vibration fills one's whole body," she said. "It makes sleeping impossible and gave me a bad migraine."
Mr Nichols offered to have five security dog units in place around the site for the duration of the festival, which was made a condition of the licence. There will also be a shuttle bus between the site and Redhill station for the first time, to reduce the number of cars. Redfest has reverted back to a two-day format this year after a three-day festival in 2012.
