Investigators could not find the driver or the other vehicle involved.
Officials said they are not sharing further details due to the active criminal investigation.
OWNER OF REMLINGER FARMS:
Nathan Sherfey, the owner of Remlinger Farms, shared a statement on Facebook about the alleged incident that occurred during the Totally Tubular Festival, which was being held at the venue.
Sherfey said the driver, who was motivated by comments online, blocked the road with their vehicle near the entrance of the farm and refused to leave.
The owner alleges that he tried to de-escalate the situation by speaking with the driver, but the driver became aggressive and criticized the concerts at Remlinger Farms.
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The driver hit Sherfey with their vehicle, knocking him off the road and down an embankment, the statement said.
Workers at Remlinger Farms told KIRO 7 News that the owner would not comment, but Sherfey shared the following statement on social media.
“Remlinger Farms has been quietly working hard to help our local community navigate through this new exciting adventure with the concert venue. Unfortunately, all of the hate speech and attacks on our business and family have caused a community member to act irrationally injuring Nathan Sherfey.”
The owner said he’s currently talking with his lawyers about the next steps.
TRAFFIC:
Several people who live in the area told KIRO 7 News that traffic near the venue has been creating controversy in the community.
“The traffic in general in town seems to be alright, but definitely the Remlinger Farm, the crossroads right there is always an issue. There was a really tragic accident here a couple years back. And my brother himself has gotten into his own accident there,” said Maleasa Smith, a neighbor.
Smith said Tuesday’s traffic affected many drivers, including herself.
“I waited like 30, 45 minutes just to get into Carnation when the last event happened,” she said. “I think they’re (concerts) helping the community in a way to be able to create an audience for this community just because Carnation isn’t very well known. I feel like that’s the only plus side of it. Everything else, it’s causing a lot of traffic and issues.”
Max Voelker said he knows Sherfey and saw him walking around with injuries at the venue during Wednesday’s concert.
“Honestly, speechless was the first thing. It’s not this community,” he said. “That sort of directed intentional violence in Carnation doesn’t feel right.”
Voelker believes the concerts are helping the local economy by bringing more customers into town, he said.
“Walking around town, it feels like it definitely has a positive impact to people coming into town, not just spending the money, but also seeing the cool stuff that Carnation has to offer and maybe coming back without a concert,” he said.
He said he is aware of the additional traffic that the concerts bring into Carnation but does not believe violence is the answer, no matter the issue.
“I think the big thing is this sort of traffic and the infrastructure around Carnation and that people coming through it have been a hot button in town already.” He said, “I really hope this is a wakeup call for the community and we can all come together and agree that violence over something like this is absolutely uncalled for.”
“We can talk through them like adults. There’s no call for violence like that,” he said.
