Budget cuts shorten Fest

[auld argonian]

Just heard a local news item on NPR about the City of Chicago having to cut days off all of our summer fests across the board. Jazz, Gospel, Blues and Celtic Fest are all going to get cut back. Reason? Budget. We're a bit in the hole as far as operating money is concerned. Like a lot of municipalities and companies the prospect of a "Christmas Vacation" for non-police and emergency employees is a strong possibility.

Those few brave souls who attended this past year's Celtic Fest know that we literally got soaked and swamped but the Fest went on. I realize that the vendors must have taken a hit because of the light attendance due to weather and I have to feel for them having to travel and pay to set up...I hope that they got some kind of consideration from the City. The joke for me is that the City of Chicago controls so much space that they could move any one of these events inside if they wanted to. The Chicago bid for the 2016 Olympics is siphoning off resources even though the majority of the citizens are indifferent to or in opposition to having the Games.

How many other locales are going to have to cut back? Hey...get some pipers, some fiddlers, some kilts and a keg of brew and a Celtic Fest will break out whether you want it to or not. One thinks that there might be some alternatives to a radical cut back.

Best

AA

[Photoguy67]

It seems to me to be a bit backward. If its canceled, then there is no revenue. You put on fests to raise revenue. Or am I just stupid?
Photoguy67

[george7]

Chicago's always had their own way of doing things.

[auld argonian]

All of these Fests are free to the public. Vendors and food stands pay for their spaces. The City pays the talent. There are corporate sponsors. But in all cases outside contractors do all of the transport, set up, tent rental, sanitation, etc. The Fests are a tourist draw.

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AA

[george7]

All of these Fests are free to the public. Vendors and food stands pay for their spaces. The City pays the talent. There are corporate sponsors. But in all cases outside contractors do all of the transport, set up, tent rental, sanitation, etc. The Fests are a tourist draw.

Best

AA

Lest we forget it is the taxpayers, and not the city, who pay for (and benefit from) the event.

[auld argonian]

Lest we forget it is the taxpayers, and not the city, who pay for (and benefit from) the event.

Only continuing to talk about the intricacies of the funding and revenue of this because it's interesting; the Downtown Chicago area has a higher tax on sales, parking, hotel rooms and amusements than the rest of the city. The reason? Ostensibly it's the tourists, conventioneers and visiting business people who are supporting the Downtown infrastructure and paying for a good chunk of the public entertainment expenses. I'm sure that every destination city has some kind of policy like this and also has a tourism and conventions bureau as well as a healthy advertising budget to coax tourists to come and spend money.

I was actually bringing it up because I'm afraid that, given the economic situation, it's the shape of things to come for some of our favorite events in the future. Let me know if anybody hears of any similar cutbacks in other future events.

Best

AA

[george7]

We have the same sales tax structure in Florida. The main tourist areas have slightly higher sales, hotel, and entertainment taxes.

On the subject of entertainment funding cutbacks...
-The Space Center Visitor's Complex has been privatized. It is ran as a theme park and under it's own management whereas it had been ran as a museum-like "visitor's center" by NASA.
-The local movie theaters are showing fewer showtimes so they can maximize their profits.
-Indian River Coffee Company (our local brewer roaster) is offering "recession lattes" for 99c.

[beloitpiper]

Hey...get some pipers, some fiddlers, some kilts and a keg of brew and a Celtic Fest will break out whether you want it to or not.

Yes. Yes it will.

[Jerry]

Much the same thing has happened to the Potomac Celtic Festival in Leesburg Va. Two years ago, it was to be canceled entirely due to loss of funding, but then they managed to get a smaller grant and did hold the festival, but cut it back to one day and held it at a smaller venue. The entertainers donated their performances and performed for tips. I didn't go this year, but it was still at the smaller venue and still only one day. I don't know if the performers were paid this year. I don't know anything about their tax structure, except that sales taxes and such have always seemed comparable to the Richmond area.