Phil Lesh & Friends performs at the 85th Stern Grove Festival in San Francisco on Aug. 14, 2022.
A massive flood that covered a venue in mud and canceled a concert three years ago has pitted San Francisco’s oldest outdoor music series against the city, spilling over into a lawsuit filed Friday.
The Stern Grove Festival Association, which has been hosting free, open-air concerts in the city park of the same name since 1932, sued the city on Friday, demanding more than $335,000 in damages after a 2021 water main break flooded the historic venue. Bob Fiedler, the executive director of the association, said in an email to SFGATE that the city “has worked hard” to clean up the grove but the nonprofit organization is still seeking more financial reimbursement.
“This complaint was filed merely as a procedural necessity, as we work on an amicable resolution with the City to recover some........