Councilor
Abel,
It
is unclear what you want me to respond to considering the e-mail below is
structured more like accusations than queries about Aurora Festival of the Arts
(AFA) practices. Further it implies the AFA is guilty of deliberately casting
the Town of Aurora in a negative light despite no proven facts
provided.
The
AFA retains a policy of not being involved with smear campaigns in print, on
websites, blogs or in business e-mails. Nor will the AFA be drawn into answering
politicians or others who hide behind the guise of needing to inform anonymous
residents.
If
anyone has reasonable questions about the AFA, our practices or the event we
produce, we can be reached through www.aurorajazzfest.com website or
office phone number. AFA contact information is also available on our 2012
postcard, FEO website, Ontario Festivals Visited website, YRAC website, York
Scene website, Town of Aurora website, Aurora Chamber website and in the recent
Aurora Leisure Services Guide, and York Scene Tourism booklet. I would suggest
the residents you have heard from be encouraged to contact us directly and
we will be happy to respond.
I
would also suggest facts be verified. The AFA has paid to advertise the Aurora
jazz+ Festival (festival) with Ontario Festivals Visited for several years
considering it is a website devoted to festivals and events in Ontario. Other
than placing the festival ad, we have had no communication with Gary or Judi
McWilliams, the owners of Ontario Festivals Visited website until we received an
e-mail from Gary recently. Gary asked if we had comments about an e-mail he
received from Councilor Paul Pirri. (Re: ‘What Were They Thinking’ article – May
2012 issue of Ontario Visited Newsletter). I personally spoke with Gary who
advised he used information from an article published by The Banner regarding a
decision made by Aurora Council to not fully support the 2012 Festival. If you
have further questions about supposed AFA involvement in the article Mr.
McWilliams wrote please contact Gary directly. gary@ontariovisited.ca 888-818-0255
Mr.
St. Kitts was the 2011 Artistic Director of the festival and the AFA has invited
him back as the 2012 Artistic Director. Sher St. Kitts is the AFA's General
Manager. Both positions require they be ex-officio members of the AFA Board.
Neither speaks for the AFA Board unless the Board gives prior approval. The AFA
respects the founding producers of the Aurora jazz+ Festival. Without their
vision to birth an arts & music festival as a special event for the 2009
Aurora Farmers Market - to growing the festival into a nonprofit volunteer
organization, the AFA would not be able to produce the upcoming 4th annual
community event benefitting citizens of Aurora and beyond.
The
AFA Board is not interested in personal blogs. We recognize and respect the
right of any private citizen to blog their opinions however, the AFA Board will
not respond to such blogs. AFA volunteers have been advised to not generate
comments on behalf of the AFA or the festival without prior Board
approval.
The
AFA has not received congratulations from the Town of Aurora for the festival
being recognized in 3 short years as a top 100 festival by Festival & Events
Ontario www.festivalandeventsontario.ca
The AFA volunteer Board who are all Aurora taxpayers are proud to have this
honour bestowed on our town. This is a first for Aurora and the only community
arts & music festival in York Region to achieve this distinction for
2012.
The
AFA would appreciate the same kindness and endorsement that is extended to other
nonprofit organizations in the town. The work our volunteers do to produce an
arts and music community event gives our Town of Aurora a cultural identity. It
also generates economic benefit for the creative community of artists
(musicians, visual artists, artisans) plus spin offs to food vendors, wellness
businesses, sound/light/backline instruments/staging companies plus local
charities and York Region High School Music departments. The AFA has recently
applied for an economic impact study through the FEO, which will prove the
economic benefits the town receives as a direct result of this award winning
festival.
This
is the second year the AFA Board has endured an attitude of mean spiritedness
from a handful of people. Continual unsubstantiated comments in the press and
elsewhere about the AFA and the community festival we produce unfortunately
serves to hurt the Town of Aurora more than they hurt the Festival. In fairness
to the facts, the AFA and its numerous volunteers would appreciate positive
support and appropriate recognition from the Town of Aurora for the festival.
The AFA requests appropriate assistance from yourself and other Council members
to build bridges towards supporting arts and culture in the Town of Aurora.
Respectfully,
Susan
Morton-Leonard
AFA
Chair/Communications
Cc:
AFA Board, AFA Advisory Board
Town of Aurora Council, Senior
Staff
Gary & Judi McWilliams, Ontario
Festivals Visited
Aurora Cultural Centre - Executive
Director
Aurora Farmers Market - Chair
Posts
20 comments:
Buckhorn, Port Hope, Owen Sound, London, Sudbury, Ottawa, Guelph -- what do these communities have in common -- they are some of the communities in Ontario that have ticketed festivals on public land and welcome them for the value they bring to the community both artistic and economic. I am certain there are small minded petty people in those communities as well as in Aurora. I will be at the Aurora festival enjoying the entertainment in our park and thankful to those who organized it.
Not s single word of thank-you for the enormous support Aurora has given by helping obtain grants, supplying staff, posting boards throughout town and even, maybe still, allowing that excessive fencing. Only more of the WE The Entitled..
Clearly the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. There is great effort being made here to achieve an appearance of separation.
This woman is obviously missing one side of her brain.
But it varies from day to day.
10:45 AM But do they block off the entire Park for the duration of their event ? With chain-link that vastly exceeds LCBO requirements? And who benefits from the ticket sales? Do the Towns get a portion? Real charities? Oodles of questions. Lots more.
You see, you just generalized without bothering with the specifics.
This is like the launch of the Facebook IPO. So very many things going wrong at the same time and no one to take responsibility. Finger-pointing - not my fault; it was the other guys.
Anonymous @ 12:31....
You must be the leader of the dumb responders here.
How many of you anti-AFA people would go to this sacred park on the weekend to sit under a tree? NONE!!! I drive by this park at various times and when nothing is going on, the place is empty. Who really cares about fencing a place that no one else will go to.
As far as your oodles of questions, I think that they have already been answered. But like she said. If you want to know the answer... ask them. Buck doesn't know, Watts doesn't know, Ballard doesn't know.
This is close to the stupidest debate ever. If this event does not happen, I hope every f'ing one of you go to the park the entire weekend and bask in the glory of being able to sit on the grass and listen to the birds. If you don't then your bitching about the fence is just that... bitching.
“This is the second year the AFA Board has endured an attitude of mean spiritedness from a handful of people.”
Sounds kind of hostile to me ! What goes around comes around.
Claim the high ground and toss in a little fireworks for good measure ! Wow. What an ambassador !
If this diatribe was written in response to some questions and/or concerns raised by Councilor Abel, I see no information being supplied which might possibly have been a reply. There is definitely an inference that he has no business soliciting information at all. Last time I looked Councilor Abel was an elected member of Aurora Council. Since Ms. Morton-Leonard has not been elected to such a position, I believe she is required to provide information requested about her organization. She is using Aurora's park, not her backyard, in order to generate money.
If Councillor Abel's letter was polite and it probably was, why is this woman throwing the equivalent of a hissy-fit in return?
Getting seriously tired of this - one more time
Aurora Park - Jazz ticket sales-$
Aurora Park -Jazz entertainment-$
Aurora Park - Jazz vendors-$
Aurora Park - Jazz beer and refreshment booths-$
It's the fencing, stupid!
Weird. M.L. does not mention the code word ' charities '. Shucks, forgot about that sucker!
It's not the end of May and these people have been nattering on about one lousy summer weekend since the beginning of the year. Get in line== all the other events run smoothly. No hassle, no bad press, no dumb fencing, no council grand-standing and bludgeoning, no free loading, no demands etc etc etc.
Whatever did poor councilor Abel do to deserve this tirade. Obviously her mother forgot to tell her never to bite the hand that feeds you, With an in your face response like that surely this Council will now wake up and turf this two bit flea circus out of the Park for good. Snow Ball Corners is a far more appropriate venue ,between the gravel pits and scrap yards they’ll feel right at home
Do we get to see the email from Mr. Abel?
1:20 PM History argues otherwise. People were ordered out of the park when the fence was installed. Hence they were inside it. Others were denied entry. Hence they had plans to be inside it. Just a quibble but you dd want facts.
This woman is totally out of control. Who in their right mind would want to enter any sort of business partnership or sponsorship with anybody brandishing this attitude. The queen of passive aggressive (and not so passive at that)
This letter, its writer and the tone in which it is written expresses perfectly what I dislike most about this town. It is impossible to escape the attitude around here.
I like the comment about "go sit under a tree in the empty park". My husband and I are amazed how few people use the parks in Aurora, at any time of year. Empty most of the day. Dozens of parks and no one in them. Take a look yourself and see if this isn't true. I think if this wasn't Sher St. Kitts event, there would be little drama over the music festival. I'm not one to favour shameless self promotion, don't personally care for the woman myself, but have no problem with fencing the park for a few days, because NO ONE ELSE IS THERE ANYWAY.
I disagree with no one in the park. As a resident who lives in the park square this park is used more than any other park in town, espcially on warm days with the kids in the watermark. I think it is disgusting that the fence is allowed to go up for the whole weekend. It causes major disruption in the neighborhood. I walk daily through the park with my dog and find it offensive to loose that when I am the one who pays taxes to use it. Have the festival but take down the eyesaw fence.
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