Jazz Festival Logistics Badly Planned for Downtown Merchants and Residents?

[02roadking]

FYI

Special Announcement
Venue Changes for Friday Night Performances Due to Inclement Weather

Due to inclement weather, for Friday night only, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival performances that were scheduled to take place on two of the outdoor stages will be moved to the Times Union Center for the Performing Arts, 100 W. Water St.   

Performances scheduled for the “Swingin’ Stage” (corner of Forsyth and Laura Streets) will be moved to the Moran Theater. 

Performances scheduled for the “Groovin’ Stage” (Hemming Plaza) will be moved to the Terry Theater.

All other elements of the festival will still take place outdoors as planned.  The performances scheduled for the “Breezin’ Stage” (the stage in The Jacksonville Landing courtyard) will also take place outdoors as planned.

Performances scheduled for Saturday, May 23, and Sunday, May 24, will be held outdoors as scheduled. 


http://www.coj.net/Departments/Recreation+and+Community+Services/Special+Events/Jazz+Festival/Default.htm

[Seraphs]

Hopefully, the jazz fest will be a success.  Why can't people utilize the skyway?  During the Jag games I use it about 90% of the time and it works out great for me and the many others who use it.

[tufsu1]

the Jazz Festival is a huge success....there was a decent crowd this afternoon and it was/is packed this evening....there's probably 2,000+ people listenting to Roberta Flack at Laura/Forysth...plus another 1000+ in The Landing courtyard...and many more on the streets.

As for the Skyway, JTA is offering $5 parking at Kings Ave and the Convention Center with free skyway all weekend....there's a full page ad in the festival program.

[thelakelander]

Nice crowd tonight, especially for Roberta Flack.  I'm glad the rain stopped for an extended period of time.

[brainstormer]

I was downtown both nights and I have heard nothing but positives, except for the weather, which finally did cooperate Sat. night.  I hope the city sticks with this idea in the future because it will surely grow in popularity as time goes on.  People loved having Laura street closed to traffic and the main stage on Forsyth was a huge hit.  Hopefully as time goes on the Laura street trio gets developed and other shops and restaurants spring up in that part of downtown.  There is a lot of civic pride when the city puts together something like this and we need more of this if we are ever to turn this city around.

At the same time, I hope the city reaches out to businesses, hotels and jazz fans for feedback, both negative and positive.  Some thoughtful criticism can only make the festival better next year.

[BridgeTroll]

I parked at the convention center but avoided the $5 fee by parking on the street.  Virtually no one was at the station... this was around 2 pm.  Signs said skyway was free but turnstiles were locked... we proceeded up the exit stairs.  I used the call button and spoke with an unenthused worker who said they would "send someone out" to unlock the turnstiles.  Rode into a near empty Hemming plaza... I felt sorry for the vendors.

The crowds got bigger as the day wore on... the sun making longer appearances.  By the end of the night it was pretty rockin...  Rode the Skyway back and found a few more vehicles in the lot...

[Southbanker]

I really hope they do the Jazz Fest this way every year! 

Other than the weather it was a great event.  Using the Snyder Memorial Church was nice too.  I think doing it downtown along Laura at a variety of venues really adds a lot of character to the event and is better than Metro Park anyday.

[Jerry Moran]

The Festival was a success overall.  Too bad about the rain.

As a downtown resident and merchant, it is not something I would want in my neighborhood again, at least not north of Forsyth Street.  The Festival caused considerable disruption to our lives.  Street closures, meters bagged as early as Wednesday, checking audio amplifiers at 8 AM, booming music, and diesel generators stinking up the place did not make for a pleasant experience.  One has to remember that people live here.

Who decided to park rented 25,000 watt diesel generators on each block to power about 500 watts of Tivoli lights?  A 1000 watt propane powered generator would have been more economical and a hell of a lot cleaner.

The effect the Festival had on my business was a wash, and total sales for Friday and Saturday amounted to that of a mediocre weekend. That could be attributed in part to the constant rain, but street closures and the absence of nearby parking  caused the cancellation of almost all previously made reservations, notably those of guests who were going to the Cirque (with a lousy 7:30 start time!).  VIP referrals from the hotels also balked when they discovered they would have to walk to Laura St.  Memorial Day Weekend is usually a slow period, so under ideal circumstances, the Festival would have probably caused a boost in patronage.  I'll say that the rain was the spoiler.

The hysteria created by the Office of Special Event's late issue of a poorly annotated street closure schedule was quelled by Sergeant Propper of the JSO.  Propper was charged with supervising the street closures.  He worked closely with the merchants and residents, and if there were a problem with a delivery or vehicle within the Festival Area, all one had to do is utter the name "Propper", and all was good.

The Festival attendees were not particularly upscale, and by my observation, for the greater part were not interested in patronizing La Cena, Chew, or even the Magnificat Cafe. Rather, they swarmed the Gypsy street vendors that had appeared overnight, in lieu of the property tax paying brick and mortar merchants.  My good neighbor Chamblin appeared to be the only anchored establishment that did a brisk Festival business,  but then Chamblin does have a very broad appeal.  Cafe Nola gave in to the masses, and offered various burgers, which in my opinion is shameful for Nola and the City.  Is what we normally do so unpopular that we have to reduce ourselves to the lowest common denominator?

Next year?  Keep the Festival south of Forsyth, and keep the streets north of Forsyth open so upscale visitors to Jackonville will have adequate access to Downtown Jacksonville's better homegrown venues.

Laura Street, Friday 6:30 PM


Laura Street, Friday 8:30 PM


Laura Street, Friday 11:15 PM

[ProjectMaximus]

That was a fair assessment, Jerry. Hopefully the event can better incorporate downtown's residents and merchants into its plans in the future.

[JeffreyS]

We should remember not only was this the first time for this local it was a scramble to do so because of the mix up with Met Park. I am sure with a year to set up it could be carried off even better for everyone.

[Steve]

I think Jerry's assessment is fair, as it pertains to his business.  Keep in mind that him and Chew are going for a different clientele (a bit more upscale than the middle if you will), and even though I love both restaraunts, after walking around for a few hours, I was a bit nasty, and didn't really want to go to either.

As far as the effect on businesses, I don't know if it was a fair weekend to measure effect, because of the weather on Friday and Saturday.  Even though there was spots of dryness, because of the bad weather all over the area, I know a lot of people just said screw it to coming down here.

I was also trying to think of a better way then to put up those tents in front of businesses.  If you want to put it in front of the eye doctor on Laura that is closed anyway on the Weekend, go ahead.  However, I didn't like the tent on the street in front of Chambin's place.

How about this as a suggestion (tell me what you think):

Leave Adams, Monroe, and Duval St open.  Close Laura St in between those streets, and just have people use (dare I say it) the crosswalks to cross those streets.  The setups on these streets are nothing that couldn't have been moved.  This would also allow Traffic to flow through.  You'd have to close Forsyth because of the stage, and I don't know about Bay.

[tufsu1]

Agreed Stephen...from what I hear, Chew and NOLA did well.

To be perfectly honest Jerry....the Jazz Festival actually does draw a relatively upscale clientele....it is one of the most racially and ethnically diverse crowds you'll ever see in Jax.

How can 50,000+ visitors be considered anything but positive?

[Jerry Moran]

Steve has some good ideas.  Why doesn't the City consult with the residents and merchants, rather than dictating terms from an ivory tower?

A conversation I had this evening with a limousine driver confirmed the incidental damage attributable to the City's poor planning and reluctance to tap local resources.

I've offered my assessment of the Festival.  Many of you probably do not like what Dick Cheney has to say either.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory_tower

[mtraininjax]

How can 50,000+ visitors be considered anything but positive?

50,000? Really? Is that in line with the 40,000 who visit the Riverside Market ever Saturday?

I never saw 50,000 people downtown, even when we had the Super Bowl.

[tufsu1]

that was the official estimate for the entire 3-day festival.....I would tell you that there were probably around 10,000 on Saturday night between all of the venues