The Brick Cafe

[Danno]

To bad about the Brick, although the food was better than the books.

Danno,
From my experience UOPE's or whatever you call it need art, culture and education for the seed. Most renaissance areas in Chicago and Milwaukee are pioneered by low rent seeking young students and artists. The coffee houses,bars and book stores will fill the niche and soon people flock to the trendy neighborhood. Gentrification kicks in and art studios, restaurants and theaters are built next to shiny new condos. The rent gets too high for the pioneers and wealthy professionals and yuppies take over.

The problem is Waukegan puts the cart before the horse, build it and they will come mentality. You need more shimer colleges,art fairs and cultural events less city sticker parking hassles, tow ordinances and roadside safety checks.

IMHO
GMG77

I'm sorry to be so blunt.

Every community has their local art and culture stuff. I go to the "cultural events" here. They are very local. They are not unique enough. I see the same 30 people at all of them. They fail here. Look at the Dandlion Wine Festival... utter failure. Same with the Mariposa Festival and the Wine and Art Stroll. All are local 3 mile radius events and all are relative dismal failures. I drove by the Benny Park tonight during the wine and Art Stroll. It was sad and pathetic. There were more people hanging out in front of my neighbors house. It just doesn't work here now. We need uniqueness. Something that will attract from 30 miles away. The theater does it on a certain level but even that is not really unique enough and we need more. I went to the steering committee that produced the Mariposa Festival. What a joke. I went to the meeting with the purpose of collaborating and promoting a Regional Lakefront Music Festival that would have drawn people from a 20 mile radius. Those people have their head up their asses when it comes to producing something that will work.