Summer in the City 2011 – how fun it was!
Thanks to those who came out to the Summer in the City events, five series in total, this summer! We hope you had a lot of fun and enjoyed the 45 free events all over Eugene. The Summer in the City event series are: -Downtown, -Live Music, -Movies, -Skate Competitions and -Breakfast at the Bike Bridges. A total of 13,288 community members joined us in our beautiful parks, our bike bridges and downtown at Kesey Square (compared to, 13,687 in 2010.)
Each one of the free series is programmed to advance specific City Council goals:
· A city with accessible and thriving culture and recreation.
· A community where all people are safe, valued and welcome.
· A community that meets its present environmental, economic and social needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Downtown:
The Cultural Services Community Events Office was thrilled to program nine fun events in Eugene’s downtown. In its third year, the events were well-received and included the Eugene Opera in the Open, the Ty Curtis Band, another fabulous fashion show, Playground Sports day with dodgeball, tether ball and the Emerald Roller Derby girls, a life-size family game night and so much more. In its third year, more than 3,100 people attended, and more than 600 cans of food were collected for FOOD for Lane County, and nearly $1,600 were donated to six local non-profit organizations. Cultural Services reached out and collaborated with more than 50 artists, community groups and businesses for these nine fun events.
Live Music:
This year’s 19 Live Music events brought 6,450 community members to our parks! Thanks to the ongoing support of Coca-Cola, Pacific Winds, and this year, the Eugene Water and Electric Board celebrating its 100th birthday, Live Music events were held all over Eugene. Monroe Park rocked with Rare Monk, Amazon Park rocked to Complicated and danced to Swing Shift, Santa Clara’s Awbrey Park jammed with Samba Ja, and so much more! The twelve weekly Sunday concerts in Washburne Park were once again very popular with the audiences. Many times these concerts provide the biggest stage and largest audience for our local community bands. At three of the twelve concerts, drop-in tree climbing experiences were offered by City of Eugene Recreation Division, which were widely popular as well. In comparison, the 2010 series offered 15 Live Music events attended by 6,140 community members. In 2009, 18 live music events were attended by 5,945 people.
Movies:
Now in its 9th year, the City of Eugene's Recreation Division once again offered the popular Movie series in our beautiful parks all around the city and neighborhoods. 1,610 residents enjoyed 11 movies, including Free Willy, Paper Moon, and Kung Fu Panda en Español. By comparison, the 14 events in 2010 were enjoyed by 2,590, and in 2009, 11 movies were watched by 2,167.
Skate Competitions:
City of Eugene Recreation Services is famous for its popular Summer Skate Competitions. This year was the 7th year for the three competitions, which drew a total of 82 competitors and 480 audience members. For comparison, in 2010, 99 competitors and 605 audience members enjoyed the events, and in 2009, two competitions and one “all girls skate clinic” attracted 74 participants and 445 attendees.
Breakfast at the Bike Bridges:
The City’s Transportation Planning office also once again offered five Breakfasts at the Bike Bridges this summer to celebrate biking and walking. This year, program staff partnered with many businesses , Northwest Community Credit Union, Eugene Coffee Company, Bagel Sphere, Arriving By Bike, Wheel Works, Paul’s Bicycle Way of Life, UO Bike Program, Blue Lotus Chai, Genesis Juice and Toby’s Tofu Pate. Approximately 1,500 bike and walk commuters stopped by the morning events, compared to 2,016 in 2010.
For more information, your ideas for next year or if you are interested in performing during the 2012 Summer in the City events, please contact Billie Moser via EugeneAGoGo.com, or e-mail or call 541-682-6347.
