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Provo music festival draws crowd downtown

October 19, 2005

The often abandoned Center Street in Provo will come alive as cars will be replaced by rocking live bands, arts and food during “Rocktober Fest.”

"I always hear people complaining about how Utah County had so little to offer for night life and culture,” said Danielle Weir, the event consultant of the Downtown Provo Alliance. “So I decided to come up with a music street festival-type event.”

Working with a local venue, Muse Music, Weir created the street festival named “Rocktober Fest” to capture the college-student market. The event will be held on Oct. 22 at 6 p.m. between 3rd and 4th West of Center Street.

Brett Meldrum, the co-manager at Muse Music, said the concert will include four diverse bands from Provo. The bands include Black River Brethren, Declaration, Daniel Tengelsen and Another Statistic.

In addition, members of Comedy Sports will be the masters of ceremony by providing comedy in between band set-ups. Skateboarders from the Decline Board Shop will perform skateboarding stunts. Artists, food vendors and will provide alternative activities for attendees.

“Rocktober Fest” caters to the interests of many people, while displaying the finest quality music, art and products that Provo can present, Weir said.

"This will be a street festival proving the critics wrong: culture really does exist in Utah county," Weir said, laughing.

A couple of businesses will sponsor this event, including the Great Salt Lake Guitar Company and the Jeweler's Bench. With financial support, Downtown Provo Alliance will be able to hold the fest for free, making it more accessible to college students.

"I think this is a very good way to help college students be aware of downtown Provo," said Christine Packard, a sophomore from San Diego. "I'm really excited about going to see this concert. It is always nice to have a free event that you can go on a date that is fun, exciting and entertaining."

Weir said downtown Provo has a wide variety of businesses, including restaurants, comedy clubs, art galleries, upscale clothing and more. But even so, local businesses cannot avoid the market competition.

"[For downtown Provo,] the greatest challenge is drawing the patronage when competing with the local shopping mall," Weir said.

To help people know that downtown Provo exists, Downtown Provo Alliance, a non-profit organization, was formed in 2001 to increase publicity and traffic for the financial center.

Susan Bradford, the executive director of the Downtown Provo Alliance, has confidence in the local businesses.

"Those shopping centers may provide a high degree of convenience for people, but what they sell there is also available in any other malls across the nation," Bradford said. "They lack the personality and quality found at the independent stories in downtown Provo."

Bradford said she hopes that “Rocktober Fest” will help increase publicity for the downtown area. She said if the event is successful this time, the alliance will consider having similar activities in the future.

Source: By Annie Wong Daily Universe Staff Reporter

http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/57055