Re: “Bummer in the Summer”

"In part because the Placebo kids were not experienced in dealing with bureaucrats and in part because the music they enjoyed tended to be loud" Feel you missed something very important here. "Dealing with bureaucrats" requires tens-of-thousands of dollars. They got kicked out of Arcata because they couldn't spend 5-digits making minor adjustments to their space- the City did not support them or help- they were not allowed to exist. The same thing happened to Synapsis in Eureka, one of the most promising, unique venues in the county. Shut down, due to lack of funds for the City's extortion fees. And lack of support from the City Council (as a whole. not you Larry). Manila, was just neighbors, which the Placebo was very pro-active about trying to resolve. No dice. If Humboldt wants to be known as forward thinking, we need to foster the arts and let collectives like The Placebo and Synapsis exist, even if they can't afford $50,000 to put in an ADA ramp/bathroom, or whatever. It's time that we recognize the vast contribution that groups like these (and events like Arts Alive, which gets no official support either) make to our community. I know codes are their for a reason- to serve the community as a whole. And I confess to lacking a full grasp of the municipal implications of my opinion. But surely we should recognize instances when our bureaucracies are not helping. We need to support a good thing when we see it. Placebo on south G was a great idea. ps. I didn't help them out much either, or attend any city council meetings, just went to some shows. Y'all should go to this one.