Bele Chere
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Bele Chere is an annual music and arts street festival held in downtown Asheville, North Carolina. The festival has been held annually on the last weekend in July since the late 1970's.[1][2] It is the largest free festival in the Southeastern United States,[3][4] attracting over 350,000 people.[1] The festival consists of six stages scattered on various street corners in Asheville. A designated area called Arts Park typically features several dozen regional artists and their work.[5] Displayed art covers a variety of media types including painting, photography, pottery and jewelry.[5] A variety of music genres are represented at the festival, including Country, Blues, Folk, Mountain, Rock and Jazz with both local and nationally (United States) known musicians represented.
A 2007 survey of businesses in downtown Asheville indicated that for over 80% of respondents, the festival was bad for business, resulting in significant revenue declines during the days on which it is held. Two factors contributing to this were the large number of non-local vendors arriving for the event and the rise in vandalism during the festival. Despite this result, more than half felt that if the festival were to continue after 2007, it should remain where it is currently located. The origin of the festival was as a way to bring needed revenue to downtown Asheville; however, since the late 1970's the area has recovered and now is financially hurt by the event. The event is revenue neutral for the local government.[2]citation applies to paragraph
[edit] References
- ^ a b Kiss, Tony. "Asheville prepares for its biggest party", Local Events and Festivals, Asheville Citizen-Times, 27 July 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-11.
- ^ a b Todd, Mark. "Bele Chere may have outlived its usefulness, business people say", Western Carolina Business Journal, 15 July 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-11.
- ^ Furr, Dean (2001). http://www.soloii.com/reviews/2001b.html. North Carolina Autocross Championships. Retrieved on 2008-08-11.
- ^ Hanrahan, Clare. "http://www.agrnews.org/issues/80/localnews.html", Local News, Ashecroft Global Reporter, 2 August 2000. Retrieved on 2007-08-11.
- ^ a b City of Asheville, Department of Parks and Recreation (21 June 2007). "Bele Chere Emphasizes Local Creativity at Arts Park". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-08-11.
