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Community Corner

Opening Weekend of Coachella Gets Underway

Thousands are either in Indio, or on their way, as the festival gates open for the first of two weekend runs.

The threat of rain did not put a damper on today's opening of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.

DJ Mea was the first scheduled act at 11:20 a.m., 20 minutes after the
gates opened for the two-weekend festival. More than 40 artists were slated to
perform on five stages throughout the day, and headliner The Black Keys was
scheduled play tonight on the main Coachella Stage.

The festival will be live streamed on YouTube starting at 2 p.m. British
band James was the first act scheduled to be shown live, at 3:55 p.m.

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Radiohead is the headliner Saturday, and Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg will close the show on Sunday.

The City of Indio released a "traffic alerts'' map outlining streets that will
be closed or that should be avoided because of traffic delays.

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Avenue 50 between Jackson and Madison streets, Avenue 49 between Monroe
and Madison and Madison between avenues 49 and 50 will be closed through Sunday and April 19-22. Delays were expected on Washington, Jefferson, and Monroe streets and avenues 50 and 52 on those days.

If they are not attending the concert, Indio police advise drivers to avoid traffic delays by steering clear of:

Jefferson Street, southbound, from Indio Boulevard to Avenue 52
Monroe Street, southbound, from I-10 to Avenue 52
Highway 111 at Jefferson Street
Highway 111 at Monroe Street
I-10 exit eastbound at Jefferson Street
I-10 exit eastbound at Monroe Street

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