Drink deeply. The sun is warm on your skin, and the breeze is rolling in from the water nearby. Your drink–whether it be a nice tea or beer– is nice and cold. You are eating some delicious food from a vendor close by, and there are some nice dessert stands you are eyeing.The air is filled with the sounds of people laughing, dancing and having friendly conversation internmingled with the toe-tapping. It makes you want to get up and dance to the joyful Latin Jazz coming from the stage. The evening is tranquil, beautiful.
Before even getting to the festival, I could not help but notice seeing so many restaurants and businesses filled with customers. The whole of First Street had pedestrians out and enjoying the weather and each other’s company. I recalled interviewing Benicia residents and getting their opinions on local issues – one person commenting on the poor attendance and steady degradation of different city events stuck out in my mind as I saw people hustling and bustling up and down First Street. It was almost as if the city heard that citizen’s concerns and took it personally because the Festival was packed on both the days it ran: Saturday the 29th and Sunday the 30th.
When in line to buy my ticket on Sunday, I asked the cashier how business had been, to which she exclaimed, “Yesterday the crowd was healthy but today has been crazy all day.”
The crowd did in fact look sizably larger than the one I saw in 2016, and after having spent a few minutes at the venue I knew why. The first stand ut feature was the different stage setup. The stage was moved from its usual spot front and center between the beer and food vendors slightly to the left, backed up, and rotated slightly to face the center between the vendors. The simple change allowed for a noticeably larger space for dancing. In addition to this, there seemed to be more seating in the shade as well.
New vendors were in attendance as well. Aside from the few food vendors that are often present at the farmers market on Thursdays, there was a food truck which sold hand-tossed New York-style pizza and a vendor who sold delicious Mexican food. There were roughly the same number of clothing and jewelry vendors – all with interesting items in stock. There were also three bounce houses for kids to play in as opposed to the usual one or two.
The music was spot-on as ever, hours after the event I already saw good reviews for Saturday’s lineup, consisting of J Silverheels, Public Eye and Hella Good. Those attending Sunday were treated to the musical stylings of House of Floyd, Farenhyte 5150, and Tortilla Soup. The community has already made its judgment in postings online, supporting and praising the different musical groups on Facebook and Benicia Patch. I commend the organizers behind the Waterfront Festivals for running a wonderful event this year and encourage all Benicia residents to come to next year’s perfect evening on that wonderful patch of green on First Street.
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It appears to me you were not there Saturday. The crowd was quoted as 1,000. How many were there on Sunday. This a fund raiser for Main Street. They charge to get in buy one and get one free or pay $10.. per person,, bounce house $10.00 for each child. Figure it out Many of the other area events are free. This one is not. On a scale of one to ten it does not even break a one. Not good. There must be changes made. One change that is being made is it will now fall under Park and Rec instead of Econ Dev. First off I would like to see how they come up with attendance and also how they track zip codes. I do believe the public is entitled to a full financial revue of Main Street. By the way how many bids did they get? Did it go out for bid? This where the city must step in. It is not a slam dunk for Main Street. Could there be other even planners that could do a better job? There is more two it than this biased article. I was there Saturday with sixteen people. It was a ghost town. I do support Benicia and will continue to do so. But Main Street needs more accountability. I do expect some negative feed back to me. That’s good, but when doing that give me a plan.
You are certainly free to start up your own events in the city, Bob. Could you let us know which organizations you have started, or are a part of, that could do better? Surely you have some real solutions to the problems you’re finding.
Bob,
Would you have made your post if you had seen more than 16 people? I don’t know what time you were there, but I was there late in the afternoon for 2 hours. At that time there were several hundred people in my estimate AND they were having FUN – just what we want from Main St.
Reg I brought sixteen people. I did not say I seen 16 people. The crowds were very light. Main Street said 1,000. All I am saying is it can be better. No entrance fee, Charge less for bounces. More vendors. Wider variety of food. Free drawings for items from the local business. Gift certificates from Safeway, Raleys, bars and restaurants , Six Flaggs, Water Parks, Benicia Bucks etc. etc. This community is very supportive. There are many things that can improve this event. It is good to have the event. If there is not enough money then Main Street should take a very pro active approach to get more money. A good start would be sponsors if they can do that. Exciting events are always good and the word does spread. I am sure you and others have been to area events. In many cases there is no comparison and in most cases there is no entrance fee. Reg it can be better. We are talking about Benicia and making it a tourist destination. Reg I always support Benicia and will continue. My comments may sound negative but they are positive. We can do better. Tell me whats wrong with that.
BB this is not about me it is about the City of Benicia. Do you think that Main Street should be accountable for their activities. Or should we just let it go as is. I do not think that way. The city should put out bids on the activity they want.. Guess what best person wins. Are you against that. All contracts should be reviewed and accountable to the city. Are you against that? I HOPE THAT IS NOT TRUE.. I do not mind BB that you want to pick a fight with me. From you I see that coming.
They’re a non-profit, and responsible for nearly every event this city has. Farmer’s market, 4th of July, Tree Lighting, Wine Walks, Ghost Walks, and many more. This article wasn’t written by them. It was just someone making an article expressing their positive feelings on the event. Bidding for events is really complicated. Non-profits don’t need to be financially transparent unless there’s signs of abuse, which there isn’t in the slightest.
BB my only concerns is the City of Benicia. This event can be better. That is all I am saying. I am a big supporter of Benicia. But we can improve. I do believe that is a reasonable expression.. If it goes unanswered so be it. I would hope that the locals would want a better event if not that is the end of the discussion..