Festival organisers have defended their bid to host up to four large-scale events a year in a historic city park.

The team behind the hugely successful Canterbury Pride, which was enjoyed by more than 30,000 people earlier this month, has applied for a new licence for the city’s Dane John Gardens.

As well as three extra events, organisers want to extend the potential length of each - including Pride - to four days, and the hours that alcohol can be sold and live music played.

However, they say their focus will be on restoring or supporting existing festivals at risk of falling off the city’s events calendar, rather than launching new ones.

These include City Sound Project in the Park, which was cancelled again this year in the face of rising costs.

Reaction to the plans has been largely supportive, with many people highlighting the economic benefits of drawing huge crowds to Canterbury.

But people living in and around the residential gardens say hosting more events would be “extremely intrusive and disturbing”.

Applicant Ian Blackmore - a director of Pride Canterbury - says a new licence will give them the scope to enhance the city’s cultural offering.

“We are losing our cultural events which have been in our calendar for ages, such as the Wise Words Festival or City Sound Project, which were both Arts Council funded,” he said.

“We have been asked by people in our circles if we can step in to stop things going under or bring back events.

“We’ve not got a portfolio of four events ready to go, but we want the provision in place so we can step in.”

The current licence allows for the serving of alcohol and playing of live music, as well as other licensable activities, to take place from Friday to Sunday, between 11am and 8pm.

Mr Blackmore has applied to extend this by a day to include Monday, and the hours from 9am to 9pm.

Many people have backed the plans, highlighting in particular their support for expanding the Pride festival.

Lisa Carlson is the chief executive of Canterbury Bid, an organisation which works with businesses in the area.

“We have been a sponsor of [Pride] for the last five years and see it as a cornerstone event for the city, highlighting Canterbury’s vibrant and diverse community,” she said.Canterbury

“The event organisers have a proven track record for producing a safe, secure, welcoming festival that many local businesses support.

“The impact of extending the festival over two days will help control the volume of people and we know that the team will do a great job keeping the quality of the event at the highest of standards.”

Director of engagement at the University of Kent, Philip Pothen said the institution, which is a sponsor of Pride, backs the application.

Describing the spectacular as “a highlight of the city’s cultural calendar”, he added: “The application - and the associated extension to the event - also represents a positive opportunity to enhance the profile of the event in the city and across the region, to attract visitors to Canterbury, and support inclusiveness in the life of the city.”

Resident and business owner Sarah Wharton says Pride is an “exciting, well organised event which brings a much-needed buzz to Canterbury”.

“In past years, it has provided a nice boost to business across the weekend, which is something all the city's businesses could do with right now.”

However, residents in the Dane John Gardens are concerned about the impact more shindigs could have.

Former city councillor Nick Eden-Green, who lives in the park, has objected to the application, branding the plans “extremely intrusive and disturbing”.

“The gardens are gravely damaged during these events.The grass and flowerbeds take months to recover, if indeed they recover at all,” he said.

Fellow resident Glenn Bowman has described Mr Blackmore’s licensing bid as “outrageous”.

“There is no detail in his application of what the events will be - perhaps Tantric Buddhist naked drumming,” he said.

“In effect, [the organiser is] asking for 16 days of shutting the park down to Canterbury residents for 12 hours each day so he can make money. I deeply object.”

Virginia and Neil Fitch have also objected to the plans, fearing the fabric of the gardens will suffer from the amount of festivals that could be held throughout the year.

“Sounds carry in the gardens with the winds and the city wall boundary, and travels further than one might expect,” they said.

“This is an impediment to our right to the quiet enjoyment of our own property, both indoors and in the garden.”

Mr Blackmore says he held an open meeting with residents of Dane John to allay any concerns about the proposals.

“It was well received and they asked some great questions, but there was some anxiousness,” he said.

“I hope between now and July that some or all of the objections are withdrawn because they have confidence in what we do.”

A report prepared for the city council’s licensing sub-committee requests further details about the application and the events proposed, and why there is a need for an extra day and extended hours.