Get!Downtown attracts more people to downtown this year

Source: The News & Advance, Lynchburg, Va.迷你倉Sept. 19--Get!Downtown organizers estimate some 9,500 people flocked to the downtown street festival this year -- up from 8,500 last year.The figures are based on informal estimates of the crowd that gathered on Main Street for the fifth annual event last Friday.But organizers said they're confident this year's turnout eclipsed last year's."Oh, definitely," said Anna Bentson, executive director of Lynch's Landing, which oversees the fest. "The streets were full."Get!Downtown is a free festival that brings music, street performers and other spectacles to downtown. The event, always held in September, is timed to draw in new college students. But it attracts people from throughout the community.The attendance estimates were released Wednesday during a regular quarterly meeting between city officials and college leaders.The college representatives were complimentary of the festival when asked for feedback, and said they've heard positive reports from students.Sweet Briar College President Jo Ellen Parker said her students particularly enjoyed the chance to meet students from other colleges.She wondered if more could be done to promote those connections next year. "Could there be some structured way to help students with common interests find each other?" she asked.City Manager Kimball Payne said perhaps student clubs and associations could play a bigger part of the event. Clubs with common missions could be brought together to wor迷你倉 on a project, he said.Other suggestions from the colleges Wednesday included posting more directional signage for those trying to drive in and park at the festival.Vice Mayor Ceasor Johnson said he's received requests for the city to hold a similar festival in the spring to mark the end of the school year."That was exciting, because it means people enjoy it," he said. "They want to do it more than once a year."Payne said the city gets requests each year for more Get!Downtown-style events. But the festival is a time-consuming project, he added, and organizers worry the shine will wear off if it's replicated too often.Bentson said organizers understand there is a demand for more events, and they're hoping to grow the monthly First Fridays art crawl and solidify it as a reoccurring downtown draw."We're really trying to make First Fridays its own get downtown event," she said, noting the gathering offers a variety of cultural exhibits and activities each month.Bentson said they're happy with the positive response Get!Downtown is receiving, and hope it will continue to grow.Lynch's Landing, a nonprofit downtown advocacy group, organizes the festival each year in partnership with the city and other organizations. Bentson said it costs about $15,000 to put on the event. That is paid for through sponsorships.Copyright: ___ (c)2013 The News & Advance (Lynchburg, Va.) Visit The News & Advance (Lynchburg, Va.) at .newsadvance.com Distributed by MCT Information Services儲存倉