Last weekend’s Belleville National Strawberry Festival went off without major glitches, with the usual fights, lost children, and disagreements between local merchants and the festival committee.
Vendors said there were more people this year, but they had less money to spend. The number of vendors was fewer than usual.
And, the weather played but a small part in the festivities.
On Friday night, the carnival rides were shut down by police because of the impending storm, which blew through, cutting electrical power to some of the surrounding rural Van Buren and Sumpter township areas for almost a full day.
A construction fence at the high school was knocked down by the 60 mph winds that blew up Friday, but on Saturday morning the fence was put back in place, none the worse for wear.
The festival parade on Saturday morning was under sunny skies, which was the norm for the rest of the weekend. There were fewer floats this year, but lots more politicians.
Four funeral processions traveled through the congested city on Saturday, briefly interrupting the detoured traffic.
Some festival-goers complained about a “soapbox preacher” expounding at the corner of Main and Second without a festival vendor permit, but Police Chief Gene Taylor said the preacher was exercising his constitutional right of freedom of speech and refused to remove him.
Robert Austin, formerly of the closed Red Beans and Rice and now of the Brown Bag Deli, told the city council Monday night of his weekend clash with the festival committee and city officials over whether he had the proper permits to be cooking and serving outside and having a band playing.
Austin said he has had outdoor seating at the deli since he opened. He said he cooked 630 slabs of ribs over the weekend and he said he thought he had permission to run his business there.
He said a member of the festival committee shut down his wife selling merchandise in front of her shop, even though his wife had the required sidewalk sale permit.
“The city council should reconsider how the festival infringes on our businesses,” Austin said.
He checked with City Hall, he said, and was told the proper permits for what he wants to do will cost $1,100 which he can’t afford. He asked for a break on the cost of the special-use approval procedure and the outdoor café permit.
The council agreed to meet with merchants who wanted input on the festival committee agreement before next year’s festival, but agreed the fees quoted to Austin are necessary because the planning consultants have to be paid for reviews and other expenses.
In a related matter, John Juriga said the new wall seating around town was well-used during the festival, but those sitting there got ketchup, mustard, and other food stains on the seats. He said the seats need to be power-washed and sealed before the next festival.