IF RIVERFEST IS GOING TO MAKE A COMEBACK, IT NEEDS MORE VOUNTEERS, MORE SUGGESTIONS

The Riverfest Association has decided to take a year off. It will reorganize its board and look at the possibility of an improved celebration in 2001.

This is a good decision considering the fact Riverfest has suffered in both attendance and donations in recent years.

The new Riverfest organizers should take a long, hard look at the date of the celebration. Riverfest is a festivity that should celebrate the Mississippi River. But June is when the river is typically out of its banks and the floodgates are closed.

In the past, organizers said it was hard to change the date because the celebration was already on statewide tourism calendar. That's not the case anymore.

Arts and crafts booths used to line downtown streets during Riverfest. But crafters found that those attending Riverfest looked but didn't buy much. The same has been heard from downtown merchants. Typically, bars and restaurants do the most business. But downtown stood solid behind the celebration for 21 years.

It would be great if the crafters and family events would return to Riverfest. The abundance of beer drinking may have driven some of the families away in recent years.

Riverfest is a celebration that requires months of planning, hundreds of volunteers and $75,000 to $80,000 in donations. It would be a shame to abandon the festival completely.

The Riverfest board is looking for new members and suggestions. Now is the time to help transform Riverfest back into a thriving, viable community festival.