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Friday, February 10, 2012
Fun, food and the four-legged make Midfest a success
by Casey Kirk, published on May 31, 2009 at 10:49 PM
Storyline: Sacramento Events
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Despite resident complaints from previous festivals, last-minute scrambling for permits, and tow-away zones on almost every residential street surrounding, Midfest 2009 turned out to be a success.
The free two-day festival, held at Midtown’s Marshall Park, was a collision of art, food and entertainment and offered entertainment for all ages.
“[Midfest] was held in a great location and wasn’t too crowded. I really like that it went on the whole weekend and there were so many different types of entertainment for everyone,” said Nikki Carlson, a stylist from Land Park’s Artisan Salon who attended Midfest.
The festival was sponsored by the Midtown Business Association, who manned many of the booths, as well as Red Bull, Budweiser and De Vere’s Irish Pub, who had a VIP tent set up for the second day of festivities.
Saturday kicked off with the Paragary’s Bloc Concert Series and break-dancing performances, inspiring many to kick off their shoes and dance in the grass while they watched the performers and enjoyed the music.
Right in the middle of the action were graffiti artists like Neal “Lopan” Bergman, who was recruited by Red Bull, grooving to the music and spray-painting giant wooden canvases.
The four-legged got in on the excitement, too. Splash Dogs, a national traveling organization, set up a giant pool for dogs to compete and see which pooch could cover the most distance after jumping in after toys.
Many of the competing dogs continued to partake in the fun afterward, lounging on the grass while their owners ate, drank and mingled.
Popular Midtown eateries set up booths selling inexpensive sampler-like snacks such as $2 sliders from Ink Eats and Drinks and $4 tacos from Paragary’s Centro Cocina.
To wash down the great food, a sectioned-off Hefeweizen beer garden offered a plethora of beer and a makeshift wine bar hosted by Sterling Vineyards offered wine while Red Bull reps handing out energy drinks circulated the park grounds.
All proceeds from the garden will be put toward the Marshall Park Beautification Fund, with plans to create a fountain in the park that will serve as a sound barrier between park events and residential areas.
Just as the garden filled up, the Bloc Outdoor Concert Series heated up with cover bands Cuesta Drive, Utz and the Shuttlecocks covering songs from various decades while the break dancers continued to impress the crowd with their moves.
The show continued on through the night and although the alcohol was flowing, the Members in Black security teams kept their muscles and force securely in tact. Concert-goers were on their best behavior Saturday night.
Sunday kept the party going with more live music, food and an urban art competition to raise money for the T & M organization for the arts.
The Sacred City Roller Derby Girls were ready to be dunked to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and local band favorites like Sammie nominees ZuhG performed on the main stage.
Based on the success of the weekend’s events, may there be many more festivals to come.
All photos taken by Chris Demere, for more photos visit http://gallery.soundesigns.com/midfest2009
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I was at both days’ events Saturday and Sunday which were great fun. I loved all the great free music especially since I am out of work. The boards to let local artists create something aesthetic in the moment was grand which happened at Sundays event. I would love to see many more of these around town if local business could afford to make happen. Thanks to the Paragary group and The Mid Town business association and other local businesses for making Mid-Town continue being a very exciting and alive city to live in. I did wonder though if Obama was coming to town or a possible bomb threat as the security was higher than anything I have experienced this lifetime for a small festival of this kind and I am a senior.
I wondered why the turnout was so small on each day. Was it the cost of parking, the $4.00 for a small beer, or all the cops?
On Saturday I counted 5 city police officers, 4 city park sheriffs rangers and about a half dozen private security guards. This amount of security I witnessed on
Saturday and it was about the same on Sunday. Is our environment that dangerous that we need this kind of security or protection? Or are we specie that is misbehaving so badly we need to be patrolled. Quite an over kill from this residents perspective.
As to the security, there was a stabbing at the Cinco De Mayo event held in the same place, and this event was expected to be of similar size and scale. Public intoxication and drunk driving are predictable effects of events like this--so some amount of police and security presence is required, and appreciated.
I am curious as to how much money was generated for the "Fountain Fund" and if it has been donated to the city yet?
It was a great event and I have to agree that the turnout was most likely lower than expected, possibly due to their promotion efforts (or lack of) but I hope that there are many events like this in the future, as everyone seemed to be really enjoying themselves.
I saw many participants drive their dogs from outer neighborhoods on saturday to participate in the splash dog event . I also parked my truck there as i was returning from running errands outside the grid and decided to stop for a spell on sunday to observe.
I dont knwo how much money was raised either as i know the first event was not profitable on saturday due to the high cost of the event ( those cops & MIB arent free). I also know it will take some time for all the accounting to take place to determine the net $..
I do know that during these economic times not only was it fun for all ,,it infused many $ into our local economy many of my ( & your) neighbors worked the event or at the surrounding businesses and they are very happy to have the work
Marshall Park needs to have special events in a smaller scale that include children activities. At atime when Midtown Buisnesses are trying to cope with the removal of graffiti , was it wise to have a graffiti artists?: Yes there was plenty of liquor, loud music, skate boarding and roller derby women. What age group were they trying to attract?
Before we turn Midtown into a large playgound for people in their early 20's Lets not forget the children, middle ageand senior population who also live in Midtown.
Finally lets plan activities in scale with the park and the neighborhood. Lets not forget the rights of the neighbors who have to live next to these loud events.
They also have rights!
I take from your statements regarding my event, that you were obviously not there, or that you just enjoy telling stories. Which ever side of the fence you land on, I find your statements offensive and undermining. I created and successfully produced an enjoyable family friendly event that I was proud to have my own family attend. I do not appreciate you lying about the average age of the attendees or the lack of children's events. My nieces enjoyed the clowns,art projects, playground, Popsicle & hot dog vendors, dunk tank and music. The mural art contest in no way mirrored graffiti, in fact the theme of the mural contest was EQUALITY. Attendance wasn't low on Sunday nor did it overtake the park, quite the contrary. We did much better than expected and I partly have you to thank you for that. It happened that all of the media you called did come to see what was going on in the park. They reported on a pleasant family event, briefly touched on your complaints and then aired a story promoting my event. Please understand I am not interested in, and will not tolerate your attempts to take away my right as a resident, and don't forget also a neighbor (that's right I don't live very far from you) to enjoy the amenity's in my neighborhood with all of the other residents that live there. I am sure you could have learned a thing or two if you had actually gone to the event and took the time to actually speak to the artists, vendors, musicians, family's and staff instead of holding up in your home and calling me on the cell phone every few hours asking me to turn down the music. Oh, one more thing; I went to your house to check the sound, strange but I just couldn't hear a thing..........
P.S. Its bad karma to speak poorly about your neighbors in a public forum.
Much Love, SJ
"Sounds louder than 80 decibels are considered potentially dangerous. Both the amount of noise and the length of time of exposure determine the amount of damage. Hair cells of the inner ear and the hearing nerve can be damaged by an intense brief impulse, like an explosion, or by continuous and/or repeated exposure to noise.
Can't my ears "adjust" and "get used" to regular noise?
If you think you have "gotten used to" the noise you are routinely exposed to, then most likely you have already suffered damage and have acquired a permanent hearing loss. Don't be fooled by thinking your ears are "tough" or that you have the ability to "tune it out"! Noise induced hearing loss is usually gradual and painless, but, unfortunately, permanent. Once destroyed, the hearing nerve and its sensory nerve cells do not regenerate!
Noise not only affects hearing. It affects other parts of the body and body systems. It is now known that noise:
* Increases blood pressure
* Has negative cardiovascular effects such as changing the way the heart beats
* Increases breathing rate
* Disturbs digestion
* Can cause an upset stomach or ulcer
* Can negatively impact a developing fetus, perhaps contributing to premature birth
* Makes it difficult to sleep, even after the noise stops
* Intensifies the effects of factors like drugs, alcohol, aging and carbon monoxide"
How did the "success" measure up to these noise standards?
BTW earplugs work wonders!