It seems like Bele Chere’s role in the city’s overall economy is an ever-controversial topic. Post your thoughts about it here.
Some starting points:
Bele Chere was started as an attempt to bring people into downtown, which was run down and on the verge of being a slum. Now that downtown is anything but blighted, does Bele Chere still have a purpose?
Many local businesses actually close during the festival because they can’t cope with all of the problems caused by the festival. Many others feel that the influx of traveling festival booths, such as some of the food tents, are actually taking money away from the local economy? Should there be a tighter limit on the kinds of booths and businesses allowed at the festival?
Bele Chere has been experimenting with ticketed music performances. Since most of the money for these shows comes from public coffers, is it fair to expect public to pay a separate fee to catch these shows? And should Bele Chere slowly move to a include more ticketed events, thus reducing the amount of public funds going to the festival?
Booths done the wrong way can take away from the local business. In Hendersonville, during the Apple Festival, the booths are so close to the businesses that to walk behind them, you often feel like you are in a tunnel and don’t really pay attention to the stores. I seem to remember the booths at Bele Cher being farther from the stores for the most part and not detracting so much from ‘brick and mortar’ businesses. If they are experiencing decreased business during Bele Cher, one thought is to have ‘double booths’. In other words, have booths facing the local businesses as well as the street. This of course would take up more space in the street, increase congestion, etc. But on the wider streets, it could work. In addition, the space between booths could be enlarged to increase visibility of the local businesses.
It is unfortunate that Asheville can’t pay for some of the bigger bands to play the festival, but if people are willing to pay, which they seem to be, let em pay!
The last time I was a vendor at Bele Chere was the late 80s and even then, the booth fees were $500. I hate to think what they charge now. Maybe they could give a price break on smaller spots to local craftspeople and artisans who don’t have a huge, pre-manufactured inventory to sell.
To me, the big question is this: Does Bele Chere still serve its purpose?
Having worked at many a Bele Chere, I have a hard time working up any enthusiasm for the festival anymore. That said, if I was unfamiliar with the town it would probably be a good introduction to the ... how to put it ... “spirit” of the city.
To me, the big question is this: Does Bele Chere still serve its purpose?
Well, whatever the original purpose may have been, just because that purpose may no longer be applicable does not mean that Bele Chere is not a wonderful, fun event that deserves to become part of Asheville’s tradition. In fact, I think it has become an important tradition in Asheville. Of course I can understand if anyone has been a direct part of it for many years, they may become tired of dealing with it and there’s no doubt insider problems that the general public doesn’t get involved in. But I hate to hear people talking about tinkering with it, changing the dates, or whatever. And businesses complaining about the booths taking away their business - come on, learn to compete, or get over it.
Is that all Bele Chere means to people anyway, profit or loss? I think it should have a higher purpose - like 3 days of fun, entertainment, and diversion - a celebration of life, art, and diversity in our beautiful mountain city - not as a way to turn a profit or soak the tourists. Even if there are a few days of less sales, in the long run, they’re likely to make it up and do even better because so many more people may come back to the downtown area in the future who ordinarily would not have if it hadn’t been for the festival.
Having worked at many a Bele Chere, I have a hard time working up any enthusiasm for the festival anymore. That said, if I was unfamiliar with the town it would probably be a good introduction to the ... how to put it ... “spirit” of the city.
You’re right about that. Last Bele Chere I convinced several out-of-state friends to visit Asheville and attend Bele Chere for the first time. They were convinced to a person that Asheville was some sleepy, backward hick town - one person even mentioned that it was probably like another Mayberry. I told them I thought they would be quite surprised. And in fact, they said they never could have imagined how wrong they were or how much fun and entertaining Bele Chere was.
As to the question of ticketed musical events, I think it’s a bad idea. Bele Chere events should be free for all, in my opinion. If a band thinks it’s so big that it can demand ticket sales for people to see and hear their performances, maybe it doesn’t belong there. I’ve never bought a ticket to see any performance at Bele Chere and doubt I ever would. But that’s just me. I know a lot of people probably feel differently.
I think what might take the festival up a notch is a performance by a world-class musical act of a different flavor than the norm.
When Tribe Called Quest almost made it a few years ago, for example, I know hopes were high for that.
This year, I wish Bele Chere could bring in Outkast from Atlanta. Does anyone know how we might entice them here?
I don’t think the might “O” is really doing a lot of shows together anymore, but you might be able to get the city interested in Andre 3000’s new thing he’s doing with the kids orchestra and whatnot (Google Class of 3000).
I used to live in Columbia, SC. There, they had the 3 Rivers Music Festival. It was all paid and ticketed. It failed. Bele Chere always seemed much better and more popular to me because it was free and open. I always wondered how they managed to do it.. free isn’t easy.
Asheville is certainly far more conducive to music than Columbia ever will be and certainly has that advantage going for it. I think the festival should remain free. Perhaps it could end a bit earlier and then focus on getting people interested in going to see music at the various venues around town. Give people more reasons to spend time and money on the local businesses so that the local businesses want to get in on it.
Is that all Bele Chere means to people anyway, profit or loss? I think it should have a higher purpose - like 3 days of fun, entertainment, and diversion - a celebration of life, art, and diversity in our beautiful mountain city - not as a way to turn a profit or soak the tourists. Even if there are a few days of less sales, in the long run, they’re likely to make it up and do even better because so many more people may come back to the downtown area in the future who ordinarily would not have if it hadn’t been for the festival.
It’s nice to think of Bele Chere in this way, but I think you’d have to work pretty hard to find someone in this town who thinks Bele Chere “represents” Asheville - if you want to see something like that, maybe check out POPAsheville, Musique Automatique, the Montford and Lexington festivals, or any of the other truly local festivals. I fondly remember the anti-Bele Chere shows held during the festival, but I don’t think anybody bothers doing anything like that anymore because it’s too much of a pain getting bands and locals downtown during the festival when all the streets are blocked off.
One solution I thought up years ago was to have booths directly in front of local businesses have to pay some sort of “local business” fee - that is, if Joe’s Dreamcatchers is in front of Local Business X, then Local Business X gets some sort of cut to offset lost business (or perhaps a merchant group could collect the fee and divy it up between businesses).
Obviously the city would never go for this, both because they’re probably terrified of scaring off booths and because they don’t want to admit that Bele Chere has problems, but the city really needs to take a hard look at the issues Bele Chere brings up. It’s nice to have the worldview of “why does it have to be about profits, maaaan?” but asking local businesses (and their employees) to give up a weekend of revenue in the spirit of “celebrating life” is a bit hard to take, especially when it means a lot of locals are losing out on a weekend’s pay. And not only is it unfair to businesses and their employees, it also makes the city look bad when all the local businesses are closed for the weekend - but who can blame them when at best they’ll maybe do a little business and at worst get hit by shoplifters (yes, it happens). I wish I had more solutions, but this is really something the city needs to take a hard look at. Sorry for the long post, but Bele Chere definitely inspires a lot of strong feelings.
(And as a final aside, is anyone else “festivaled out”? It seems like there’s a new one every weekend, and while I’m not against people holding them I just wonder when we’ll reach the tipping point where people will stop going).
We’re getting near to Bele Chere 2008. C’mon—‘fess up—who isn’t just a little, teeny, tiny bit excited?
Actually, I’m looking forward to it.
Putting Bele Chere down seems to be the PC thing to do nowadays I guess, but I always enjoy it, and don’t mind saying so. The only thing I don’t care for is the rain that seems to have plagued it the last couple of years.
