Love It or Hate It? Arts, Beats & Eats Gets Personal During Comment Marathon

What do Royal Oak residents and business owners think about ? City Commissioners got an earful about the festival from dozens of people at a meeting Monday.

Olympic runner , who trains with owners of in Royal Oak, ran the Boston Marathon in approximately the same amount of time (2:22:38) as it took to get through public comment at Monday night’s commission session.

In the packed meeting room, most residents and business owners had high praise for the four-day Labor Day weekend event, its producer Jon Witz and Royal Oak’s Police and Fire Department’s handling of the festival.

“We attended (Arts, Beat & Eats) at least once a day – all four days,” said Tammy Ristau, a 26-year resident who lives two blocks from Main Street. “We enjoyed being able to attend with our children and exposing them to musical acts. We felt comfortable letting our 12-year-old daughter and a friend walk to the festival without us. They were able to ride the rides, get a bite to eat and enjoy music without us worrying about them.”

Patty Brown, a 23-year-resident who also lives within walking distance of the festival, congratulated city leaders for bringing the community together for four days.

“Every morning the parade down Lincoln started with marching toddlers carrying backpack and the parents pushing strollers,” Brown said. “The police were highly visible and I felt totally safe.”

Other positive comments included:

• The favorable publicity the city receives from the media for weeks leading up to the event
• High marks for the festival being a family-friendly event
• Praise for new additions to the event, including the and
• Some store and restaurant owners said they saw an uptick in business
• Kind words for Witz for being nice, approachable, and easy to work with

Many speakers who thought Arts, Beats & Eats needed improvements—such as better control of noise levels from helicopters and the music to better oversight of the hours of operation—also called themselves cheerleaders and enthusiasts for the event.

“It’s strictly a parking problem. I don’t want to see (Arts, Beats & Eats) go away,” said Patrick Scanlon, of the and . 

Scanlon said both of his businesses were down this year.

“My windows were shaking,” said Tom December, of the Skylofts Royal Oak Condominium Association. December said his association supports the event, but added it could be a much better experience.

Anne Kuffler, owner of 18-year-old , spoke for several businesses on Main Street. She told commissioners the festival is only beneficial for one street—Washington. Kuffler questioned the number of hours city officials devote to the event and whether a “carnival atmosphere” enhances Royal Oak’s image.

After nearly two and a half hours of public comment, the last speaker of the night was Witz.

“I am grateful to have the festival in this type town of town - with this level of competency,” he said, adding festivalgoers, including those with families, got along famously.

Witz said he is willing to sit down with city leaders in the next few weeks and go over residents' and business owners' concerns. Specifically, he offered to do a sound check throughout the city on Thursday night before the festival and adjust speakers as necessary.

Interim Police Chief Corrigan O’Donohue said later in the meeting the police received 29 noise complaints. The chief also reiterated and that “the event went very well” from his perspective.

Public comics

During the passionate public comment marathon, there were thankfully a few moments of comic relief. These statements drew the biggest laughs:

Bill Shaw: Unfortunately I had to miss Art, Beats & Eats this year because I was in Atlanta. We did hear some of the music though.

Luigi Cutraro: There is something wrong with Arts, Beats & Eats - I gained about 5 pounds – and for that I hate Jon Witz.