Florida Brewers Guild won't be holding a beer festival in Jacksonville this year

[Tacachale]

Your government inaction.

Florida Brewers Guild won't be holding a beer festival in Jacksonville this year

Submitted by Ed Stansel on May 16, 2014 - 11:40am Amber Waves


The Florida Brewers Guild beer festival that had been planned as the grand finale of Jax Beer Week has been canceled.

Eric Luman, brewer and co-owner at Green Room Brewing in Jacksonville Beach and a guild board member, said he worked with city officials to find a location, finally settling on Hemming Plaza. But by then, it was too late to meet a 90-day deadline for submitting the required paperwork. The festival had been planned for May 31, the final day of Jax Beer Week.

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http://jacksonville.com/opinion/blog/428360/ed-stansel/2014-05-16/florida-brewers-guild-wont-be-holding-beer-festival

[finehoe]

Eric Luman...said he worked with city officials to find a location, finally settling on Hemming Plaza. But by then, it was too late to meet a 90-day deadline for submitting the required paperwork.

Who's '90-day deadline'?  Hemming Plaza's?  The Guild?  How is it the city's fault?

[Tacachale]

They went back and forth so much that by the time they decided on Hemming it was too late to meet the city's (arbitrary) 90 day deadline to actually use the park.

[MEGATRON]

Why on earth is 90 days needed to process an application?  Bang up job City

[fieldafm]

How is it the city's fault?

It's 100% the City's fault.  They have been talking with COJ for months. Initially they were going to host the event at Friendship Fountain. The Riverwalk work made that unfeasible. COJ is now saying that Hemming isnt an option (btw, an option they themselves suggested) because they need 90 days to process the permit application (which is BS).

I could go on, and on... and on about my own awful experiences. 

[carpnter]

Unless this 90-day deadline was recently implemented, you can't lay this on the city. 

[MEGATRON]

How is it the city's fault?

It's 100% the City's fault.  They have been talking with COJ for months. Initially they were going to host the event at Friendship Fountain. The Riverwalk work made that unfeasible. COJ is now saying that Hemming isnt an option (btw, an option they themselves suggested) because they need 90 days to process the permit application (which is BS).

I could go on, and on... and on about my own awful experiences.

Awful experiences?  Like the clap?  Is this the wrong thread?

[MEGATRON]

Unless this 90-day deadline was recently implemented, you can't lay this on the city.

What is the point of a 90-day deadline?  If they have been working with the City on this event, the City should have the flexibility to process the application in far less than 90 days.

Three months to process the application?  Think about that. 

[thelakelander]

Three months to process the application?  Think about that.

^That is something to think about.

[fieldafm]

Unless this 90-day deadline was recently implemented, you can't lay this on the city.

I can give you a loan for millions of dollars in less than 30 days(and I can assure you that it gets audited by many, many layers of internal and external parties). A two page application for people to drink beer in a park shouldn't take three times that long (and btw, special events permits have been issued in less than 90 days for many, many, many years).

[fieldafm]

How is it the city's fault?

It's 100% the City's fault.  They have been talking with COJ for months. Initially they were going to host the event at Friendship Fountain. The Riverwalk work made that unfeasible. COJ is now saying that Hemming isnt an option (btw, an option they themselves suggested) because they need 90 days to process the permit application (which is BS).

I could go on, and on... and on about my own awful experiences.

Awful experiences?  Like the clap?  Is this the wrong thread?

It doesn't take 90 days to get an STD

[IrvAdams]

Ninety days sounds illogical. I don't understand it, I sincerely hope there is more to this story.

Maybe when the new management team takes over the operation and maintenance of the park, things will be streamlined to a more reasonable cycle.

[JayBird]

Though the 90 days seems foolish to me, I also think someone trying to set up something like this in less than 90 days is foolish. A venue should've been priority 1 and they should've had that locked down by the new year for something like that. March 1st at latest. I wouldn't blame solely the city, they are at fault for not communicating with each other about recommending stuff and their own deadlines, but the organizers are also to blame for their own lack of experience in organizing such events or not seeking those that had experience to guide them.

Lesson learned: good, beneficial events don't just happen. They need 90% pre-planning and 10% day of work.

[fieldafm]

but the organizers are also to blame for their own lack of experience in organizing such events or not seeking those that had experience to guide them.

I can assure you, that was not the case.

[marty904]

Though the 90 days seems foolish to me, I also think someone trying to set up something like this in less than 90 days is foolish. A venue should've been priority 1 and they should've had that locked down by the new year for something like that. March 1st at latest. I wouldn't blame solely the city, they are at fault for not communicating with each other about recommending stuff and their own deadlines, but the organizers are also to blame for their own lack of experience in organizing such events or not seeking those that had experience to guide them.

Lesson learned: good, beneficial events don't just happen. They need 90% pre-planning and 10% day of work.

I have to agree with JayBird on this one. Being an event producer myself, that is spot on... 90% of the work for an event like this, happens up to day of event and the venue should have been locked down way before 90 days out.  But again, I agree that if this is the city's policy, it is pretty foolish, especially with all the "talk" about how the city is really trying to revitalize downtown, the 90 day "red tape" doesn't seem to support the supposed desire to make things happen (by the COJ).