5/1/2007
Springfest had modest beginnings
By Don Klein
When Springfest opens tomorrow to begin its 17th season as the prelude to the summer tourist season in Ocean City, Jim Hall can look back to the time he first thought it would be a good idea for the town.
He was working one of the beer trucks at Sunfest, the granddaddy of the shoulder season festivals in the resort town which later this summer will celebrate its 33rd anniversary, when the idea popped into his head.
"Why can't we do the same in the spring?" was his thought. He kicked the idea around with interested parties and after receiving a string of endorsements from the non-profit organizations that man the Ocean City seasonal fests, he took it to the next step.
"The idea didn't go over too well in the town council, at first," recalls Mr. Hall, a councilman of three years at the time. This was back in the pre-inlet days when even Sunfest did not have its name. It was called Save Six in September.
Eventually, Springfest got the green light and opened on Seventh Street with a couple of tables and a handful of volunteers. Today hundreds of volunteers man booths selling souvenirs, tee-shirts, beer and other trinkets and food to thousands of early visitors to the beach during the four-day weekend. The profits from the sales go to help the non-profit organizations make ends meet.
Landing a merchandising spot at the fests is determined by a list which rotates in sequence among the different organizations registered with the town and assigning them to different venues within the event.
“People absolutely love it," Mr. Hall, still a town councilman going on 20 years, said referring to Springfest today. "It's a way for veteran groups, fraternal organizations and religious institutions, among other non-profits, to earn revenues." The number of participating organizations varies every year, and can number as many as 30.
Springfest has been growing in popularity over the years among visitors as well. It may have started with a couple of setup tables and a handful of volunteers 17 years ago but last year it filled the Inlet parking lot and attracted a record 105,466 visitors. That was an increase of 8.1 percent over the previous year.
"We expect to keep growing every year," Councilman Hall predicted, "providing the weather cooperates." Like practically every outdoor activity in a resort town like Ocean City, weather is a crucial ingredient. Good weather spells success, bad weather can be deadly to business.
Councilman Hall modestly accepts credit for the Springfest idea but adds that it could not be the success it is without the hard work of the Ocean City Recreation and Parks Department (OCR&P) which runs all three fests, Sunfest and Winterfest as well, with great skill.
Using equine parlance, the councilman said, the OCR&P staff "took Sunfest from a yearling to a thoroughbred." He looks at his favorite community project today and says, "It has become a success beyond our fondest dreams."
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Uploaded: 5/2/2007
