Rhythms on the River to go on as planned

The popular springtime Friday music series in Morgan City, Rhythms on the River, will go on as scheduled in 2018 with just a minor change to the stage location, organizers and officials said Tuesday.

Mayor Frank “Boo” Grizzaffi said at Tuesday’s council meeting that recent comments had circulated on social media with a concern that Rhythms on the River was in jeopardy of being shut down.

But, in fact, there was no discussion by city officials to discontinue the event, Grizzaffi said.

Café JoJo’s, located on Front Street in Morgan City, hosts Rhythms on the River each Friday from the beginning of April to the start of June with bands playing 6:30-9:30 p.m. This year’s series will go from April 6 through June 1. The council gave approval Tuesday for Café JoJo’s to once again hold the series and allow Front Street to be blocked between Everett and Freret streets.

“What happened is we had a concerned citizen who lived nearby who has been working with the city over the last several years trying to find a solution to a noise issue that rears its head around the same time every year,” Grizzaffi said.

The city received a letter from that resident to try to resolve the issue, and the involved parties reached a compromise, the mayor said.

Café JoJo’s owner Brian Blanchard said event officials agreed to turn the stage so that it faces more toward Railroad Avenue to address the noise complaint.

Councilman Louis Tamporello said organizers and officials do a great job to make sure Rhythms on the River ends promptly at 9:30 p.m.

“I think it says a lot about our community,” Blanchard said. “We can all get together, all walks of life. Go out, have a good time. ... We hadn’t had any issues.”

The police presence does a lot to help keep the event running smoothly, too, Blanchard said. Sponsors also ensure the music series continues each year, he said.

“We’re hopefully going to continue to do this, and (have) bigger and better things in the future,” Blanchard said.