Now City Council wants a new signature festival, one that it doesn’t want to pay for. Here’s how Mountain Xpress reporter David Forbes tweeted the City Council discussion regarding the request for a new festival proposal:
Next: starting process to evaluate interest in a late summer event to take place of Bele Chere, w less city involvement.
Bellamy questioning criteria for new event, doesn’t think process “fleshed out as it should be”
Vice Mayor Esther Manheimer: talked about criteria in Planning/Econ committee. Want to be broad because innovative idea out there
Hunt: also have concerns about expectations. Retail places downtown don’t want repeat of Bele Chere. City can’t bear same costs
Hunt: concerned criteria could drag us back to proposals that would have same level of “subsidy, overcrowding” as Bele Chere
Manheimer: don’t want to replicate Bele Chere. Want some new, exciting ideas.
Smith: if want new ideas, must be broad as possible. But want to monitor situation.
David: Great cities have great festivals. “A lot of good things happened at Bele Chere.” Drifted over years, but going to miss it.
Davis: I hope we can get something to replace Bele Chere. “I don’t want to see it get away” think a lot of us had a good time.
Davis: “bele chere wasn’t just about drinking and carousing”
Bellamy: don’t like broad criteria, could “skew the process.” Will oppose this.
Bellamy wants RFP. Manheimer doesn’t mind that. Bothwell: don’t see why we need act of Council to get ideas.
Bothwell: if bele chere was breaking even, wouldn’t be here, but it was getting a lot of taxpayer money.
Staff concerned that while RFP would be definite, Asheville’s a diverse city, prefer to go forward
request for information on festival to replace Bele Chere passes 6-1. Bellamy against.