Broad Street Bash Beer

Sounds as if we could all benefit by having Mr. Lewis and Mr. Gordon handle the city money on expenditures rather than the current crew, as they seem to possess some common sense, are open to providing answers to questions when asked, seem to monitor the money to ensure the best bang for the buck, seem to have the desire to provide some much needed positive entertainment for the general public as opposed to special interest groups and "friends of the city building" and seem to be competent in their mode of operation. None of these traits mentioned are characteristics of the method of operation by the current tribe who occupy the city building.

On the contrary. Waste, non-accountability, special interest at the expense of the general population and "secretive magical fund money movements" with a "we just found some money we didn't know we had" by the city manager occasionally thrown in is the theme down at One Donham Plaza.

Thank You for kind remarks. We are proud of our event and I hope that it will inspire others to volunteer and help turn things around in this town.

Thank you Mr. Lewis for your overview of the event. Helps to understand how the operation works to us spectators.


If only we could receive feedback from the city leaders in such a truthful, timely, accurate, detailed fashion about our city, as you have chosen to do with your event.

Appreciated.

Let me see if I can answer your questions. The We Can Business Incubator is the organization that handles our event as far as bookkeeping, some logistics etc.  They also do other events in town such as The Legends of Rock and some charitable events.

The Bash can’t survive on beer sales alone. We have Corporate and private sponsors that supplement what we need to do the shows. It costs a lot to do these shows when you consider: Bands, sound engineer, insurance, street closure, police, portable toilets, ice, beer, kid zone inflatable, electric,  setup/cleanup, dumpster rental, and the other misc. things that pop up every week.

Total beer sales were down last year I think due to the more family friendly event so there where a few shows that the sales did not cover the expense. That’s why we have Sponsors. In addition last year we spent around $10,000 upgrading the stage to include adding 6 feet to the front of it and adding more electric to the stage and vendor area. All this was submitted to the proper channels at the City and inspected and approved by the City. We paid for it through our Corporate Sponsors.

Beer sales are overseen by our Committee. People working the tent are trained to look for anyone who has over indulged and a Supervisor is there to help them. At least 3 people are out front checking ID’s and putting beer only bracelets on people. You can’t buy a beer without it and only 2 beers can be bought per person at one time.  You will also see that the Police Officers generally are located near that beer tent. I ask them to help us keep an eye out for anyone who has had too much to drink so we can cut them off.  We’ve only had 1 instance where a person was asked to leave and that was a gentleman who brought his own beverages in illegally. We caught him and the Officers escorted him out. Luckily he was walking.

Our BEER ONLY permit comes from The State of Ohio. We submit a detailed area map showing the designated area for consumption. We then rope that area off and place signs saying no alcohol beyond this point. We also patrol the area for illegal beverages brought in. The Kid Zone is outside this area.

Some of the non profits that have benefited from the tips are; Paws, Saint Vincent DePaul, Arts on Main, to name a few.

We receive no money from the city. We also pay them for the street closures. We also pay the Police Officers directly.

 This is not a money making event and was never intended to be. Everyone is a volunteer. In fact it costs me money by taking me away from my real job every other Wednesday. I know the rest of the Volunteers feel the same way.

The Bash has always been about giving locals a FREE event in the summer where they can bring their families and have fun.  

 

Tim Lewis
Which non profit sells and profits from the beer sales and how is the money accounted for?
I have heard that an organization called We Can Business Incumbator profits from the beer sales. According to their 2009 IRS filing they had over $30,000 in income from events and spent about $28,000.

Seems there should be some public accounting for money raised using public property.

Local non profit groups sell the beer in hopes of getting tips for  their respective organizations.(Last year they all were happy with the money received.)  Profits from the sales go to help pay for the event. In fact, it is our main source of income. The entertainment does not perform for free as some people assume so we have to sell LOTS of beer.  Hope that answers your question.