Wondering, on Wednesday (v28)

Have you heard the news coming from the New York State Fair?  

We’re learning from officials that somewhere around 20 offers had been put out for Grandstand acts for the 12-day run of the Fair this fall, and only one – country star Eric Church – has been booked. According to the Fair people, there are two reasons we’re having a problem: the short run of the Fair, and the high cost of acts that are on the road. The threat is that there may be only one Grandstand performer this year, which would hurt the fair almost as much as booking acts that only draw a couple thousand people at the 17,000 seat venue.  (Carly Rae Jepson, anyone?) 

I'm wondering, on this Wednesday, how this news impacts plans for the OnPhitheater being built across the street from the Fairgrounds, which has a commitment to hold a concert during the Fair this year, and which will replace the Grandstand going forward. Remember, we were originally told that the OnPhitheater would complement but not replace the Grandstand, and as we all suspected, it is of course going to be the pay-for concert venue for the Fair.

And unless someone's thinking about extending the Fair beyond the traditional 12 days, won’t we have the same problem going forward? And does anyone think prices will be going down anytime soon, particularly when the OnPhitheater will be in competition with other upstate outdoor venues and casinos, making it a musician's market not a venue market? 

Here's one more thing I'm wondering about. Remember the big darn deal that was made when it was announced that Billy Joel would be playing his 400th show at the Carrier Dome? Wasn't it the same promoter who announced at the same time that Buffalo would be getting multiple Garth Brooks shows? And even more Garth shows were added based on ticket sales? Is there something we're missing here? 

Speaking of missing things, I hope you caught the news from the Upstate Freshwater Institute and that we can safely swim at the north end of Onondaga Lake? It's true, they say: the water is clear enough, and the bacteria levels are low enough, for swimming.  We're still not able to eat the fish, but as far as taking a dip, we're good.

And so now County Executive Joanie Mahoney is thinking we could have a study to see about building a beach up at the Liverpool end of the lake. Are you wondering, like I am, how long it will take before we'll have another JoAndrew bus tour, where Mahoney and our Sonofa Governor can get all of the old  Onondaga Lake plans dusted off? Maybe we'll see another pile of taxpayer dollars dropped into the area?

I mean, our Garth-loving friends have the Buffalo Billion, we might as well have OnMillions, right?