Comments on: Merchants Protest Increased Street Fair Fees http://www.nyacknewsandviews.com/2010/07/vh_streetfairfees/ Community news and opinion for Nyack, NY Wed, 08 Feb 2012 05:25:32 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: JC Brotherhood http://www.nyacknewsandviews.com/2010/07/vh_streetfairfees/comment-page-1/#comment-1188 JC Brotherhood Fri, 23 Jul 2010 18:22:55 +0000 http://www.nyacknewsandviews.com/?p=10579#comment-1188 It occurs to this writer what transpired last night at Village Hall was a “teachable moment” so to speak. In this case the lesson is about outreach. While for the most part it is incumbent upon everyone to due diligence on issues in the Village, there too exists a responsibility on the part of our Village Board to reach out directly to certain key individuals or groups who have invested large amounts of time and effort. This is especially true on key issues or initiatives being considered that will effect, in this case, the street fairs. We all tend to want to speak with the people we want to speak with and ignore others. I don’t think this is deliberate in this case but if you are considering raising a fee or other revenue such as this and you do not directly engage either the Chamber or ACADA then I’d suggest the process is flawed and needs to be reconsidered next time. After-all, it’s sort of pointless to try and diffuse a bomb after it has already gone off. JC It occurs to this writer what transpired last night at Village Hall was a “teachable moment” so to speak.

In this case the lesson is about outreach. While for the most part it is incumbent upon everyone to due diligence on issues in the Village, there too exists a responsibility on the part of our Village Board to reach out directly to certain key individuals or groups who have invested large amounts of time and effort. This is especially true on key issues or initiatives being considered that will effect, in this case, the street fairs.

We all tend to want to speak with the people we want to speak with and ignore others. I don’t think this is deliberate in this case but if you are considering raising a fee or other revenue such as this and you do not directly engage either the Chamber or ACADA then I’d suggest the process is flawed and needs to be reconsidered next time.

After-all, it’s sort of pointless to try and diffuse a bomb after it has already gone off.
JC

]]> By: DSpi http://www.nyacknewsandviews.com/2010/07/vh_streetfairfees/comment-page-1/#comment-1187 DSpi Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:44:46 +0000 http://www.nyacknewsandviews.com/?p=10579#comment-1187 While I can appreciate the disapproval of such an increase and certainly the manner in which it tried to be implemented (step first, react later), I wonder what the typical fees are for other nearby villages that host street fairs? Are we in line currently? Was this just one of those "let's raise fees" decisions without much thought? If we are not charging what we should and an increase is warranted, than so be it. But, on the other hand, if we were just throwing an increase out there, than it deserves some more thought for both the participants and the Village of Nyack, as we need to be thought of as a welcoming, friendly village to visit and to business with and within! While I can appreciate the disapproval of such an increase and certainly the manner in which it tried to be implemented (step first, react later), I wonder what the typical fees are for other nearby villages that host street fairs? Are we in line currently? Was this just one of those “let’s raise fees” decisions without much thought? If we are not charging what we should and an increase is warranted, than so be it. But, on the other hand, if we were just throwing an increase out there, than it deserves some more thought for both the participants and the Village of Nyack, as we need to be thought of as a welcoming, friendly village to visit and to business with and within!

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