The concerts in Smithfield last weekend proved that all roof gardens are not the same. While the roof over Chief O'Neill's Hotel was full of partying people with a bird's eye view of the Buena Vista Social Club, the equally large roof garden over the adjacent block of apartments was deserted except for a torch-wielding, fluorescent jacketed security guard. Meanwhile, residents of the apartments at the lower levels were spotted straining to see out of their windows, which are not designed to open at eye level.

The roof garden was out of bounds to them during the concert "for health and safety reasons" according to Ben Gough, boss of managing agents Wyse. Because the majority of the apartments are owned by investors and occupied by tenants, the management company decided it would have been simply impossible to monitor who should or should not be on the roof garden.