Two months before Route 91 Harvest Festival, Stephen Paddock had booked a room at the Blackstone Hotel in Chicago, IL. Paddock, now infamous for perpetrating the largest mass shooting in American history, had contacted the Blackstone after booking through Expedia. After navigating his way through customer service, Paddock ultimately spoke to a manager and demanded that he receive a room with the view of Grant Park. The booking coincided with Lollapalooza Festival which has been held in Grant Park every year since 2005.
The Blackstone Hotel has a strict policy against specific room requests, but reports say that Paddock claimed he and his wife had first met at Lollapalooza and that they needed a view of the festival. Paddock was aggressive and demanding on the phone to hotel staff, and despite policy, the manager ultimately guaranteed him a view of Grant Park.
The 2017 edition of Lollapalooza featured headliners such as Porter Robinson, DJ Snake, Gramatik, Kaskade, and Zeds Dead. Festival attendance was roughly 100,000 per day.
Fortunately, Paddock never showed up to the event.
