We can build and finance a hockey arena for a private business, we can pay out good hard-earned taxpayer money to sponsor professional sports like football and wrestling but where was our Mayor to help out a local private entrepreneur who has been around for a dozen years who was having money trouble when the Detroit/ Windsor Tunnel pulled out as sponsor rather late in the game.
I was annoyed by what I considered to be the dismissive tone by the Mayor when talking about Festival Epicure. I know that he has so much on his plate these days like figuring out how many Council meetings per month we should have and whether they are public or in camera or working on the Council dinner menus or putting into his scrapbook all of the WWE photos that were taken of him this weekend.
I thought I heard about nurturing our Gazelles in Windsor. This type of comment is hardly one that would give a person a lot of comfort:
- "Francis said he wasn’t overly concerned that the spirit of the successful food and drink festival won’t be revived in some other form since Epicure’s executive producer, Ken Brandes, announced Friday the withdrawal of the event’s title sponsor, the Windsor-Detroit Tunnel...
Francis said he expects to hear more discussions over the next couple of weeks about what can be done to revive the attraction."
"Next couple of weeks" Sheeeesh, hardly a sense of urgency is it!
Contrast the Mayor's attitude with his predecessor, Mike Hurst. Back in 2003:
- "A committee of downtown business owners is hoping to bring at least two U.S.-based festivals to the streets of the city this summer.
The idea is to attract families and older adults to the city core, said Rob Katzman, development chairman of the City Centre Business Association.
Mayor Mike Hurst said he supports the concept of new street festivals that would not conflict with existing riverfront events.
"I like his thinking," Hurst said of the proposals of Katzman's committee. "If there's a will it can be done."
In May, 2003 when Windsor tourism was suffering, "an additional $50,000 to $75,000 has been made available through the mayor's [Hurst] office" to help fund an ad campaign targeting Michigan residents.
In June, 2003 when Eddie was a Councillor, he said
- "Don't just keep putting up billboards. We've got to give them a reason to come here. It isn't enough to count on the desperately addicted.[who go to the Casino]" Francis said the Windsor area is starved for attractions, so much so that countless local families patronize the Wheels Inn in Chatham.
"There's nothing to do here. I'm blown away by the number of Windsorites who go to Chatham." Francis said powerful business cases can be presented for new convention facilities and for diverse family attractions in one setting, ranging from go-karts to an aquarium, that would appeal to residents as well as visitors.
I can remember Councillors Ron Jones, Ken Lewenza Jr. and Tom Wilson going out for money for the Buskers festival.
My point is not that the City should bail out the Festival Epicure but that the Mayor can use his influence to try and find donors to save a function that brings thousands of people downtown and which brings big dollars into the comunity rather than doing nothing.
If he needs help in drafting a letter, here is one from Adriano Ciotoli of the website http://www.windsoreats.com/ You might want to go there next time you are looking for a restaurant
- "At a time when tourism in this region is at an all time low, it is important to keep established events that the community and tourists alike look forward to every year. No, taxpayers should not be responsible for footing the bill, but busineses in our region should come together to ensure that this festival, that provides enjoyment and entertainment to families, continues.
It's not true that a new festival can take the place of Festival Epicure, as it took Epicure 12 years to establish its current reputation as a great event and reach attendance records of over 35,000 in a weekend. In the last seven years it has generated over $165,000 to the Kidney Foundation of Canada, employed local residents to assist in running the festival, used local businesses and promoted our region to people across the world.
Windsor is fortunate in that we have some really vibrant and exciting festivals that take place all over our city and make it a great place to live and visit. As a community, we are facing many struggles at the moment. It would be detrimental to lose a festival this successful and of this magnitude. It is a benefit to our community and makes Windsor an attractive place to work and live.
Again, while we do not expect taxpayers dollars to be used to finance this event, we do believe it is important to have our community show their vocal support and our corporate citizens to show financial support. Events such as this are a benefit to our community and make Windsor an attractive place to work and live.
People can show their support for Festival Epicure by visiting http://www.windsoreats.com/03272007.html."
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