24th Annual Lilac Festival (2013)

[RicoLance21]

24th ANNUAL LILAC FESTIVAL

Post your pics of the festival here.

Sorry, I missed out on the festival this year due to my weekend course. However, I managed to capture the end.



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[Spring2008]

^Looks like you avoided the earlier crowds. Below is a quick photo I snapped of the northern section around 1:30. The mosh pit of people carried through about 10-15 blocks south of here all the way to The Elbow River.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/8286638...n/photostream/

I ended up going to a pub for awhile and coming back near the end when it died down a bit. I was thinking to myself it might make more sense to set up a few blocks each way on 17th as well in the future given the sheer number of people that showed up.

[Full Mountain]

Originally Posted by Spring2008

^Looks like you avoided the earlier crowds. Below is a quick photo I snapped of the northern section around 1:30. The mosh pit of people carried through about 10-15 blocks south of here all the way to The Elbow River.

I ended up going to a pub for awhile and coming back near the end when it died down a bit. I was thinking to myself it might make more sense to set up a few blocks each way on 17th as well in the future given the sheer number of people that showed up.

You would think that the 17th BRZ would be all over that yet somehow they don't get that people in cars aren't the one's keeping businesses open, so they seemingly grudgingly let the mission BRZ close that intersection once a year and keep fighting to keep the parking the rest of the year

[RicoLance21]

Originally Posted by Full Mountain

You would think that the 17th BRZ would be all over that yet somehow they don't get that people in cars aren't the one's keeping businesses open, so they seemingly grudgingly let the mission BRZ close that intersection once a year and keep fighting to keep the parking the rest of the year

Another idea would be to have police-controlled crossings at both 11 Avenue and 12 Avenue. The festival can then continue to expand northward all the way to 7 Avenue. Also, there's Stephen Avenue if organizers want to expand even more.

[Spring2008]

I heard on the radio that attendance was over 125,000-a new record.

Both 20/20 and Maxwell Bates look like they'll be ready for occupancy by the end of the summer. That new retail block on 4th and 17th looks like it's about to start full excavation right away.

[Luk_o]

Originally Posted by Spring2008

I heard on the radio that attendance was over 125,000-a new record.

Both 20/20 and Maxwell Bates look like they'll be ready for occupancy by the end of the summer. That new retail block on 4th and 17th looks like it's about to start full excavation right away.

Had a fantastic day down on 4th, definitely the biggest attendance I've seen, lots of spill over to the adjacent streets with the celebrating. Nenshi was mingling out with the crowd, taking in the festivities too - great Mayor.

Are there any renderings for the new retail for the corner at 17th & 4th? The other three corners are currently occupied with god awful buildings, that prominent intersection deserves much better. The 'renos' they did to Bob the Fish to make it the Tilted Kilt.... my god.

[Surrealplaces]

Agreed. It would b e nice if 17th could be blocked off even for one block on each side of 4th.

Originally Posted by Spring2008

I ended up going to a pub for awhile and coming back near the end when it died down a bit. I was thinking to myself it might make more sense to set up a few blocks each way on 17th as well in the future given the sheer number of people that showed up.

[DizzyEdge]

Originally Posted by Surrealplaces

Agreed. It would b e nice if 17th could be blocked off even for one block on each side of 4th.

It was, it was blocked off at 2nd st and 5th st.
I believe the problem is that it's a 4th street (ie 4th st BRZ) festival, not an Uptown 17th one.

[Calgarian]

Didn't go this year, Lilac fest gets a little crowded for my tastes. Does anyone think it's possible Lilac Fest will ever move north of the CPR tracks? I think enough people would come to make it work, not sure if we can close off all of 4St though.

I also think they should do this on a different day than the marathon, was damn near impossible to get around, or out of downtown yesterday, what a pain in the ass!

[MasterG]

Originally Posted by Calgarian

Didn't go this year, Lilac fest gets a little crowded for my tastes. Does anyone think it's possible Lilac Fest will ever move north of the CPR tracks? I think enough people would come to make it work, not sure if we can close off all of 4St though.

I also think they should do this on a different day than the marathon, was damn near impossible to get around, or out of downtown yesterday, what a pain in the ass!

I live right in the belly of the beast, a block off of 4th in Mission. It was a gong show from 8am onwards. Took me 45 mins from Marda Loop to get back home, and I have a parking spot so I wasn't even searching like the rest of the throngs.

It is a really really crowded festival, anything to thin the crowds would be welcome. They should close 17th for a couple extra blocks too. Its like being in the front row of a crowded concert no matter where you are along 4th. Too crowded.

[Full Mountain]

Originally Posted by MasterG

I live right in the belly of the beast, a block off of 4th in Mission. It was a gong show from 8am onwards. Took me 45 mins from Marda Loop to get back home, and I have a parking spot so I wasn't even searching like the rest of the throngs.

It is a really really crowded festival, anything to thin the crowds would be welcome. They should close 17th for a couple extra blocks too. Its like being in the front row of a crowded concert no matter where you are along 4th. Too crowded.

We went to get a few supplies around 4 and couldn't believe the missed opportunity that not including 17th was, by the time you got to 7th street it was no busier than a typical Sunday, if they expanded it on to 17th west to 8th street it would draw those crowds down the ave even farther driving business to the many places that are there.

It wouldn't have to be the solid line of tents that are on 4th if you had tents where there isn't street front retail (here and here and here) It would still draw people down the ave.

[Radley77]

Originally Posted by Calgarian

Didn't go this year, Lilac fest gets a little crowded for my tastes. Does anyone think it's possible Lilac Fest will ever move north of the CPR tracks? I think enough people would come to make it work, not sure if we can close off all of 4St though.

I also think they should do this on a different day than the marathon, was damn near impossible to get around, or out of downtown yesterday, what a pain in the ass!

Went for a bit though left quickly as my sister was having anxiety due to the crowds. Would be better if the crowds were thinned out over a bigger area in my opinion.

Also, I feel as if the event itself was very bourgeois, not that this is a bad thing, but if Calgarians were to play a part to support local arts and businesses on a weekly basis it would be a revolution. I still very much feel that in Calgary the normal social order is to go to the malls on weekends and buy from American corporations.

[kw5150]

You know what would be great now and then in Calgary? A freakin drink special on a weekend! C'mon pubs, we have been paying 8.00 a beer long enough (and then tipping on top of that) Give us something back!!

These festivals are just a cash cow for pubs, lame.

Overall though, I love that we have a lilac festival, and now can talk about the crowds and how to deal with them. Im pretty sure I went a decade ago and the crowds were smaller and the festival didnt go on for as many blocks as it does now.

Pretty successful if you ask me. Now lets just keep it going and re-invent it a little bit.

[ByeByeBaby]

I was glad to see 17th shut down totally, rather than the stupid situation from years past that just backed up both traffic and crowds. So what about an expansion, temporally -- have the festival run both days of the weekend? The challenge would be the Saturday night, since the booths wouldn't be manned. They could be taken down, I suppose -- I have been working a booth for a few years, and it seems like it would be sort of workable. Even to semi take them down and move stuff to protected (and security patrolled) cages set up.

[Riise]

Originally Posted by ByeByeBaby

So what about an expansion, temporally -- have the festival run both days of the weekend? The challenge would be the Saturday night, since the booths wouldn't be manned. They could be taken down, I suppose -- I have been working a booth for a few years, and it seems like it would be sort of workable. Even to semi take them down and move stuff to protected (and security patrolled) cages set up.

You could just have a different line-up for the second day.

[RicoLance21]

Originally Posted by ByeByeBaby

I was glad to see 17th shut down totally, rather than the stupid situation from years past that just backed up both traffic and crowds. So what about an expansion, temporally -- have the festival run both days of the weekend? The challenge would be the Saturday night, since the booths wouldn't be manned. They could be taken down, I suppose -- I have been working a booth for a few years, and it seems like it would be sort of workable. Even to semi take them down and move stuff to protected (and security patrolled) cages set up.

I am sure it can be worked out. Maybe they could learn from how booths were set up during multi-day events like the Taste of Calgary. There are also multi-day events in Edmonton like the Heritage Festival or the Fringe.