The Sunnyvale Sun
News
Art & Wine Fest makes money for both Chamber, city
Despite location change, people still come downtown in droves
By JASON GOLDMAN-HALL
Summer may have still been 21/2 weeks away, but the warm weather, blue skies and fun atmosphere at the June 3 and 4 Sunnyvale Art & Wine Festival made it clear the warm vacation season had arrived.
All weekend, Sunnyvale, Washington and S. Murphy avenues were full of vendors, shoppers and performers, with everything from cap guns to toe rings made of antique silver spoons.
According to Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Suzi Blackman, the chamber did "a lot better" this year than last year, bringing almost $20,000 more in revenues that will go to fund events and programs for the next year.
And while the streets were packed, one part of the downtown was conspicuously empty. Plaza Del Sol, the city's multi-million-dollar public use facility, had nothing but a few sunbathers in it while the surrounding area was teeming with visitors.
Last year, the space was rented by the Chamber of Commerce for $800 and used for community performances.
But this year, the city wanted $3,200 for the space. The cost--$800 a day for both
festival days and set-up and take-down days--reflects the actual $800 a day cost the chamber got a break on last year.
Blackman said the $3,200 was too much for her budget,, and the plaza was unused.
That isn't unusual.
According to Mayor Ron Swegles, the space is rarely used, and has only been rented once by a cultural group. It has been used more than that, but not for revenue-generating events as it was intended.
Swegles said after Blackman talked to him, he looked into it, and the council will look at changing the rates to attract more users.
"We're running it like a business, and if you're in business and you have a product you're selling that no one is using, you have to look at why that is," Swegles said.
And although piping was installed for plumbing, no bathrooms or water fixtures were installed because of lack of funding. Swegles said they are looking at possibly installing bathrooms and other amenities to make it more user-friendly.
But even without Plaza Del Sol, there was no shortage of booths and attractions for visitors. And that meant more revenue for the chamber and more patrons in downtown businesses throughout the weekend. Many of the booths were put up by people who do a "festival circuit" of West Coast events, which meant they needed hotel rooms and restaurants.
Blackman said this year continued a gradually improving trend she has seen in the past three or four years. Both the amount of money raised and the number of businesses involved improved this year.
"I always look at sponsorships as a sign of an improving economy," Blackman said. "Businesses have a little more money and want to get involved more."
Toyota Sunnyvale--the major sponsor of the event and the reason Sunnyvale Avenue was renamed "Toyota Sunnyvale Avenue" for the weekend--had a large display area set up in the parking lot just north Washington Avenue on Sunnyvale Avenue. Owner Adam Simms said "an astounding number of people" came by to look at cars.
"It just seemed to me like there were more people walking around than other years we've been here," Simms said. "It makes sense; employment is up and there is an upbeat economic feeling in the community."
San Jose resident Sandy Alvares said this year was her family's seventh time at the Art & Wine Festival. She said they began coming because not only was it one of the first of the festival season, but appealed to her entire family more than others.
"This is one of the better ones. They have a lot more of the arts and crafty stuff here," Alvares said.
She, too, said the festival was rebounding from the hit it took following the "dot-bomb."
"The festival got smaller over the years, but it's starting to grow again," she said.
By the end of the weekend, Sunnyvale's Faultline and Firehouse Breweries were out or nearly out of beer and all but 32 of 300 cases of wine had been emptied.
The Chamber of Commerce estimated between 110,000 and 120,000 people visited this year's festival.
