Arts, Beats & Eats is moving to Royal Oak

**sg9018** · December-08-09, 08:06 PM

The Metro Detroit festival is moving from Pontiac to Royal Oak in 2010.Pontiac wanted a $100,000 fee from the festival to host.
Link to story,
http://www.freep.com/article/2009120...e-to-Royal-Oak
The Map for the festival,
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/m...rams=Id=148145

Arts, Beats & Eats festival set to move to Royal Oak
BY BILL LAITNER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
Itâ€™s official: The Arts, Beats & Eats festival that for the last 12 years was in Pontiac will move in 2010 to Royal Oak.

At an announcement celebration this afternoon at Sangria restaurant in Royal Oak, Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson predicted that the event would draw 450,000 people next year â€“ exactly double the attendance reported in Pontiac over the four-day Labor Day weekend event this year.
â€œIâ€™m not here at all to cast any aspersions on Pontiac,â€ Patterson said. â€œThe people there are really crestfallenâ€ about losing the festival to Royal Oak.

**Bobl** · December-08-09, 08:12 PM

I'll still be spending my time at the Jazz Festival. More room to roam. Detroit River view. More musical talent. No entrance fee.

**xphillipjrx** · December-08-09, 10:50 PM

It's going to be huge.

**1KielsonDrive** · December-08-09, 11:18 PM

Last time I ever go.

**1KielsonDrive** · December-08-09, 11:20 PM

ABE moves to RO. It's called kicking 'em when they're down.

Bearinabox · December-09-09, 07:00 AM

So Pontiac's leadership would rather lose the festival than lower their fee? Am I missing something, or are they just that stupid?

**luckycar** · December-09-09, 07:10 AM

They are just that stupid.We have now hit bottom.I saw roll-off boxes being hauled away from the old Fisher Body/Pontiac /Fiero plant on Baldwin yesterday.Maybe they are starting to get rid of it all."I may be lying in the gutter,but I'm looking up at the stars."

**Sec106** · December-09-09, 05:36 PM

Even more of a reason not to go, we,ll be enjoying the Jazz Fest just like every year.

**casscorridor** · December-09-09, 05:49 PM

Moving to Royal Joke? One less reason to go to Arts, Beats and Eats, one more reason to go to City Fest.

**gnome** · December-09-09, 06:02 PM

I'm sure you'll be missed.

**dtowncitylover** · December-09-09, 06:51 PM

Originally Posted by casscorridor

Moving to Royal Joke? One less reason to go to Arts, Beats and Eats, one more reason to go to City Fest.

Really? Royal Joke? Really? What is this, 1975? Royal Oak is a good location for ABE. It has a viable downtown whose businesses will do well when ABE happens, unlike Pontiac. ABE is just the suburban response to CityFest, and there's nothing wrong with that. I think it being in Pontiac would be one less reason to go to ABE.

**NoHeartAnthony** · December-09-09, 07:18 PM

So you'd rather go to the festival while it's in Pontiac [[farther), than in Royal Oak [[closer)? They're both evil suburbs, who cares?

**DetroitZack** · December-09-09, 08:05 PM

Sucks for Pontiac, unless I am going to the zoo you won't catch me in Royal Oak.

**1KielsonDrive** · December-09-09, 09:09 PM

Originally Posted by Bearinabox

So Pontiac's leadership would rather lose the festival than lower their fee? Am I missing something, or are they just that stupid?

Do you know the details? If so, let us in on them. Otherwise, you're just assuming the ABE is correct in moving. I'm not willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

**1KielsonDrive** · December-09-09, 09:10 PM

Originally Posted by Sec106

Even more of a reason not to go, we,ll be enjoying the Jazz Fest just like every year.

Yay! Yay! Yay!

**1KielsonDrive** · December-09-09, 09:11 PM

Originally Posted by casscorridor

Moving to Royal Joke? One less reason to go to Arts, Beats and Eats, one more reason to go to City Fest.

Uh, huh. Right on.

**1KielsonDrive** · December-09-09, 09:12 PM

Originally Posted by NoHeartAnthony

So you'd rather go to the festival while it's in Pontiac [[farther), than in Royal Oak [[closer)? They're both evil suburbs, who cares?

RO isn't necessarily evil, but it is boring and fairly stereotypical.

**eno** · December-09-09, 09:28 PM

I've never been to an ABE's event. I found plenty to do between the jazz fest in Hart Plaza or the Labor Day Fest in Hamtramck. Now that it's moved to RO, there's a better chance I might go but it depends upon who's playing. RO has become a bit pricey.

Bearinabox · December-09-09, 11:06 PM

Originally Posted by 1KielsonDrive

Do you know the details? If so, let us in on them. Otherwise, you're just assuming the ABE is correct in moving. I'm not willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

I'm not sure what you mean by "assuming the ABE is correct in moving." The relevant point is, they are moving, and this quote from the original post implies that they're moving because Pontiac's fee was too high.

The Metro Detroit festival is moving from Pontiac to Royal Oak in 2010.Pontiac wanted a $100,000 fee from the festival to host.

If it's true that Pontiac demanded such a fee, and if it's also true that the fee was the impulse for moving the festival, then maybe the city of Pontiac should have tried to negotiate a price that was acceptable to ABE's organizers instead of just letting the festival slip away.

**dtowncitylover** · December-09-09, 11:18 PM

Originally Posted by 1KielsonDrive

RO isn't necessarily evil, but it is boring and fairly stereotypical.

Boring? What makes Pontiac so exciting? ABE is all they had. Stereotypical? I'm not so sure. We've been labeled as the "yuppie" place. All I see in Royal Oak, where I live, is older people and families all up and down the blocks. Sorry Royal Oak is not your typical suburb like Livonia or Warren.

**pffft** · December-09-09, 11:27 PM

$3 to walk around public streets, see local cover bands and oh, maybe Morris Day and the Time, plus lots of crafts booths.

Free to walk around the jazz festival downtown, enjoy the architecture and world class musicians. Hard to choose...

**dtowncitylover** · December-10-09, 12:01 AM

Originally Posted by pffft

$3 to walk around public streets, see local cover bands and oh, maybe Morris Day and the Time, plus lots of crafts booths.

Free to walk around the jazz festival downtown, enjoy the architecture and world class musicians. Hard to choose...

The only difference between ABE and CityFest is the location. The only difference between ABE and Jazz Fest is the music. Other than that all three have the exact same food and art booths. I can easily go downtown/New Center and see the great architecture on any other day. I don't see why some of us are upset that ABE has moved to Royal Oak. ABE is just the suburban alternative to CityFest.

**pffft** · December-10-09, 12:18 AM

Upset? Hardly, just incredulous that anyone would pay $3 for a bunch of cover bands and very lame crafts.

Crafts at the jazz festival -- are you serious? The booths at the jazz festival predominantly have to do with music, some are crafts, but at least nobody charges you to walk by and ignore them.

"The only difference is the music." Yes, huge difference though -- world class musicians, both from around the world, and Detroit...and it's free. Hello?
Have to hand it to Jon Witz, charging people for a street fair...brilliant.

**NoHeartAnthony** · December-10-09, 01:30 AM

I didn't know ABE was a jazz fest. I don't know why that comparison was made.

**EastsideAl** · December-10-09, 01:41 AM

Never been to this thing, nor do I really have any real desire to go from the the sounds of it. But then I always spend my Labor Day weekends at the jazz festival, which is one of the great events we have in this area, and truly one of the best free music festivals in the country. But it is a real shame that Pontiac, a city that I'm sure could really use this festival, would lose it to a place like Royal Oak that doesn't need it anywhere near as much.