Great Barrington — Despite angry objections of some Railroad Street merchants, the Selectboard approved the sixth season of the Berkshire Busk! summer festival at its meeting on Monday, March 23.
Selectboard member Ben Elliott, who is the creative director for The Triplex Cinema, recused himself from the vote because The Triplex is one of the venues for Berkshire Busk! performances.
The outdoor festival started in 2020 during the pandemic and has drawn people to the downtown area through live musical performances and acts by magicians, circus artists, and dancers.
Last year’s season spanned from the beginning of July to the end of August on stages at Upper and Lower Railroad Street, along with a new stage at the Triplex Cinema Courtyard and throughout the Main Street downtown area.
Berkshire Busk! operates through a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headed by Festival Director Eugene Carr and General Manager Carli Scolforo.
Scolforo and Carr presented their application for an entertainment permit at the March 23 Selectboard meeting.
According to Scolforo, approximately 25,000 people attended last year’s season, with 81 percent year-round residents and 19 percent tourists from outside Berkshire County.
Scolforo told the Selectboard the series of Berkshire Busk! events brought in $1 million of incremental economic impact to downtown Great Barrington.
“Our mission is to drive to try to bring people to downtown Great Barrington, to shop and dine, create community, and to be with each other in a safe and enjoyable setting,” Carr told the Selectboard. “But bringing people downtown doesn’t automatically benefit every business in the same way, and we’ve heard that consistently. For the last five years, we’ve had lots of feedback, both in-person meetings and secondary meetings. Some business owners have told us that the street closure, particularly on Saturdays in the afternoon, disrupts the natural flow of shopping.”
In previous years, Railroad Street was closed 10 weekends in a row on Friday and Saturday nights for Berkshire Busk performances. This year, full festivals throughout downtown, with a Railroad Street closure, will be held on the weekends of July 4, 11, and 18. For the other seven weekends in the summer series, performances will be held only at the Triplex courtyard.
“We’re essentially giving back to the retailers for seven weekends the way Railroad Street used to be,” Carr said. “We thought this summer would be an opportunity to try this out. It may not be the right decision, but we decided that digging our heels in and not adjusting and listening was probably also not a good idea. We figured we’re never going to make everyone happy, but we thought we would try a new approach.”
This did not placate some business owners, several of whom sent comments to the Selectboard before the meeting while others spoke at the meeting itself.
“As one of the largest building owners in Great Barrington, and as a business owner with more than 100 tenants, I do not see this format as a good fit for the town,” wrote Alander Construction Principal Ian Rasch in a letter sent before the meeting. “The current approach creates significant challenges for parking, everyday access, getting to and from work, and maintaining normal business activity—particularly during some of our busiest summer weekends when businesses rely heavily on steady customer flow and accessibility,” he wrote. “Berkshire Busk! is promoted as a 10-weekend street music and arts festival in downtown Great Barrington, with performances on Friday and Saturday evenings throughout the summer and a Saturday artisan vendor market. While the performances themselves may last only two to three hours, the road closures and logistical impacts extend far beyond that window. The disruption affects retail traffic, restaurant operations, and the ability for employees, residents, and customers to move through downtown efficiently, which can ultimately impact business revenue during an important economic season.”
Jamie Goldenberg, owner of Hart at 16 Railroad Street, said that while she was not against Berkshire Busk! itself, she is not in favor of the town granting the organization a permit to operate. “Like the Selectboard and everyone here, I am deeply committed to the Great Barrington community, old and young, local and visiting families, and people of all circumstances and abilities,” he said. “All of us here are invested in the future of downtown Great Barrington. I commend Gene for his vision in helping the town through a rough economic period during COVID.”
Goldenberg continued, “When the busk started, it was helping not hurting downtown businesses by drawing people in when we were lacking common gathering spaces. However, this is no longer the case. It is making business more difficult downtown. I’m not so sure that the Selectboard is fully aware of the extent of the burden the busk has created for downtown businesses. While the busk creates space for some to gather in town, it simultaneously drives away many others.”
Goldenberg said she conducted a poll of local customers and other business owners and found that Berkshire Busk! has impacted businesses’ ability to hold classes and events and conduct sales. “One local shop owner said that many of their customers don’t come to Great Barrington on weekends anymore,” she said. “The busk bills itself as a big free event. However, this event costs time and money from the Department of Public Works and Town Hall. It puts additional financial strain on businesses that are being used as the backdrop for this event. It depends on a lot of goodwill and resources from the town and neighbors, and many of the neighbors are no longer feeling any goodwill towards this event.”
On the other end of the spectrum, Michael Marcus, owner of Bizen Gourmet Japanese Restaurant located at 17 Railroad Street, across the street from Hart, voiced his support for the continuation of Berkshire Busk! “I can’t be any more opposed to the dissent expressed today by some merchants on Railroad Street,” he said. “The busk has brought countless people to Great Barrington and to Railroad Street. It has been an experience of joy for the entire community. If you come to Railroad Street throughout the summer, you will see a great outpouring of joy and community. Children running around town holding their ice cream cones, people enjoying the music and experiencing community. And I just want to say there would be great despair if the Berkshire Busk! was cut. It would sabotage all the great gains that have been made over the last five years. Other towns are trying to emulate Great Barrington, and they compare themselves to the model that Berkshire Busk! has created. We can’t let that sabotage our great success, and cutting Berkshire Busk! would be a horrible experience.”
Donna Norman, owner of Calyx Dispensary at 307 Main Street, also spoke in favor of the event. “While I understand concerns about parking and access, and those concerns are valid, many of the businesses who are most concerned are closed at five or six o’clock before the busk even begins,” she said. “Customers are not being displaced; they’re simply arriving when doors are already closed. In my five years of business, not one single customer has called my shop asking me, ‘Where can I park?’ It’s a walkable town. There’s always parking. Our town used to have nighttime activities, but after 5 p.m., it’s largely quiet.”
Norman called the busk events “some of the only things besides the Fire Department’s car show and the holiday Sip and Stroll that bring people back to the downtown area in the evening.” “[Berkshire Busk!] is incredibly valuable from a business perspective,” she said. “This isn’t a disruption. It’s built-in foot traffic that we didn’t have to pay for. Foot traffic only turns into revenue if businesses are open to receive it. From my own experience being open until 8 p.m., I can say that there’s a noticeable difference in energy and engagement on festival nights.”
While Selectboard member Garfield Reed has been critical of the event in past years, at the March 23 Selectboard meeting, he said he changed his mind. “In the beginning I wasn’t really much of a busk person, and I thought no locals came,” he explained. “But from the survey [taken by Berkshire Busk!], it seems that there are locals that are definitely coming. I’m not against it any longer, and I think it’s a great event. The bottom line, to me, is that it’s hard to dismiss the fact that you are bringing in about a million dollars to town. That’s hard to overlook and I think that is important.”
The Selectboard ultimately voted to approve the permit application.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source theberkshireedge.com ’
