Organizer of controversial Kaysville concert says it’s moving to Tooele County

Eric Moutsos, founder of Utah Business Revival, says a concert he had planned for Kaysville despite rules against large gatherings will now happen in Tooele County. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News

SALT LAKE CITY — A controversial outdoor concert planned by a group opposed to pandemic-related restrictions on people and businesses is being moved from Kaysville to Grantsville after facing backlash from local residents and the City Council.

But a Tooele County official says it’s news to him that Utah Business Revival wants to hold the May 30 event at the Studio Ranch Amphitheater in the Rush Valley area south of Grantsville.

Commissioner Shawn Milne said mass gathering permits take about 60 days to process so that officials can ensure the event hosts provide proper sanitation facilities, access to water and ensure safety.

“For them to consider giving us slightly more than a week’s notice is unreasonable even under normal circumstances,” Milne said. Earlier Thursday morning he replied to a tweet on KSL Newsradio’s “Dave and Dujanovic” show that he hadn’t heard of the plans until they tweeted them.

“An event of that size — even under normal circumstances — would require a mass gathering permit,” Milne tweeted. “Timelines for review and permitting such a gathering would require more than the ten days until their proposed date.”

Currently, holding the concert would violate social distancing and crowd size guidelines issued by Gov. Gary Herbert to help curb the spread of COVID-19.

The event stirred controversy in Kaysville after Mayor Katie Witt announced she supported the event. After news of the change of venue was announced, Witt issued a short statement noting that “the freedom to peaceably assemble is a bedrock principle that Utah was founded on. I will always stand up for your constitutional rights” and added “we need to safely reopen America.”

Eric Moutsos, founder of Utah Business Revival and concert organizer, said in an interview on the “Dave and Dujanovic” show that he decided to move the concert because Kaysville was threatening to turn the sprinklers on all the equipment to keep the event from proceeding.

Moutsos also said he hasn’t contacted Tooele County at all since the concert location is on private property and he’s not concerned about it being shut down. He also said that he doesn’t really care about permitting because he sees it as government overreach.

The Tooele County Health Department confirmed in a press release Thursday afternoon that the concert hasn’t been approved by the department or by the county and that action can be taken against venues that fail to receive proper permitting.

“Our greatest concern is for the health and safety of our citizens,” the health department said in the release. “After an event is held without a permit it is possible for the health department to file charges against the property owner for allowing an un-permitted event to take place.”

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