SALT LAKE CITY — What's become known to some as a summer tradition in Salt Lake City is coming to an end after decades in the backyard of a Sugarhouse home.
Inside her bungelow is where you'll find 81-year-old Carolyn Turkanis, a woman who has a timeless love for music and is known by many as the glue that brings communities together.
"I love being in this neighborhood because it's very vibrant people are very friendly neighbors, love being out and about," said Turkanis.
A love for the neighborhood and music came together in 2000 when Turkanis started hosting garden concerts in her backyard.
"Every year when we play in Carolyn's garden it's our favorite show over the year," explained musician Michelle Moonshine.
Turkanis said the backyard idea sprang from when she was invited to a house concert at a friend's home.
"I was just enchanted," she explained. "It was a potluck dinner, a musician was there, we all gave a little voluntary donation and listened to music and ate good and I was so inspired i wanted to do the same."
But now Turkanis says the city has told her the show can't go on. In 2022, she received another letter from officials claiming her concerts were in violation of city code and "all events shall cease as of the expiration of the letter."
Turkanis received similar letters in July and August of last year.
"The city, I believe, heard from a neighbor and then the city sent me a civil notice that this neighborhood was not zoned for outdoor concerts and actually said if I didn't stop they would take legal action against me and start issuing fines," she said.
After the August arrived, dozens of people showed their support for Turkanis by signing a letter that was sent to the city.
"Hearing that Carolyn's not allowed to have concerts is pretty heartbreaking for me and my band and all the other musicians and concertgoers in town," said Moonshine.
Turkanis claims she's always tried to be a good neighbor. After the city sent a code violation letter in 2010, she believed she came to a compromise, taking down her webpage and switching to Facebook, ending concerts before 10 p.m. and was mindful of traffic concerns while adhering to neighborhood noise guidelines.
Musicians explained how important the backyard concerts were to their growth as performers.
"Being an artist, what is the stage being, learning how to play a guitar and playing at the Salt Setter, what's the spaces in-between to be an artist and to be able to go there and be a musician be an artist and be paid reasonably well, everyone donates money for the artist, and it's a big deal when you're a musician," said musician Megan Peters.
Having held summer garden concerts for 23 years, Turkanis's goal was twenty five, but with the latest letter, she doesn't know if she'll ever hit the milestone.
"I've had numerous offers from friends to support my concert series somewhere else in other gardens or backyard or public buildings," she shared. "I've been toying with that idea because I want to support local music. It's hard not to be able to offer my home or my garden.
"I wish the city would be willing to come to a compromise instead of being so black and white about what is allowed in this neighborhood."
