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Winter's End Means Summerfest Is On Its Way
By Keith Hagarty
Daylight savings time is over, the temperatures are rising and Brick Township is underway preparing for the 14th Annual Summerfest celebration
To kick off the preparations, Global Producer Services (GPS) was unanimously chosen by the Township Council to oversee the festival traditionally held each summer at Windward Beach.
Successfully coordinating large-scale events throughout New Jersey, GPS was an easy choice to run Summerfest for the second year in a row, said Mayor Stephen Acropolis.
"They do the Wine Grower's Festivals across the country, the Jazz Festival of Red Bank and Ballonfest," said Acropolis.
This year's event promises to continue the tradition of wide-scale entertainment for everyone, said township officials.
"We've got music for everyone," said Acropolis. "We've got a little bit for everybody, so that anybody that wants to enjoy the beach and those things can."
Some of the early headline performers expected to perform at this year's Summerfest include a Billy Joel tribute band, Beatlemania, doo wop, a 70s and 80s tribute show, a country show, the Landsharks and a Jimmy Buffet-sanctioned cover band.
Even though the scheduled performers are still in the early stages, Councilman Dan Toth is excited about what this year's event will be offering for young and old.
"It's kind of an interesting, eclectic mix of performances we're going to have," said Toth. "It's not just your ordinary backyard six-string strummers."
While it hasn't been confirmed, Toth said there is also the possibility of an "American Idol" style event also being held.
"That may be for in the beginning, or for one of the opening acts, we're not sure yet," said Toth. "We've got a lot of stuff up our sleeves for the Summerfest in order to revitalize and bring in a lot of much needed revenue into the township."
And what Summerfest would be complete without fireworks?
"We do have fireworks scheduled for each of the nights," said Acropolis. "People say, 'oh, well it's going to cost more money,' but what we've done is gone out and gotten already four of the five nights sponsored. So that will be at no cost to the taxpayers."
Having a firework spectacle for the public was viewed as an important aspect for this summer's township festival.
"It brings people together," said Acropolis. "But it's a situation, where as Councilman Toth said, it's got to be revenue neutral or revenue positive. It's one of those things we're really looking at."
Summerfest is one of those highly-anticipated events of the year where politics can be put aside for a little while and entertainment for the whole family is the only thing that truly matters.
"I think everyone in the community enjoys it," said Councilwoman Kathy Russell. "It's something for our community to look forward to and it helps the businesses here in Brick Township."
Watching festival-goers enjoy themselves with friends and families is always a welcome sight to Russell, as is the knowledge that local vendors are reaping the benefits as well, officials said.
"When people come to Summerfest, whether they live on town or from out of town, they spend money in town," said Russell. "The economy of our town could certainly use that."
Acropolis said he would like to also see a different local township organization - such as the Kiwanis Club, Rotary Club, Elks Club, etc. - have a day dedicated to their group for each of the Summerfest nights.
"We used to have Founder's Day here, and we talk about that all the time, so it brings a little bit more of a township flavor to the event as opposed to having 60 percent of the people there from outside the area," he said. "Kind of like a little bit more of Founder's Day type of event each night that we have Summerfest."
The council and administration promise much more Summerfest details and announcements as the months progress.
"We also have some other things where we also might be able to save on some money," he said. "We're still working on it, and this is our first step."
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