Anything else?

Bring back the Renegade in the Catani gardens! It's great to see alternative crews be part of the festival.. It's also a great party there sometimes.

Bring more events during the week! More "big" events, some friday night shows, or beach events during the evenings leading to Sudnay??

Some special ephemeral constructions like the Soco were great!

Some classical / jazz brunch / food events, longest breakfast on the beach or so?!

We got to work with some fantastic bands & be part of a well run event. From a band's perspective it's a great festival experience, from the organisation & support, to the show itself.

yeah , just don't ruin it because of a few complaints . i 've enjoyed 19 festival's and am looking forward to many more in this exciting suburb . also keep it free !

Hey I only heard about this on facebook, you should make sure you tell everyone about it so everyone can say what they think, expecially if the festival might get cancelled

More events as part of the live N local would be fantastic. Maybe some events on Friday and saturday nights, finishing at 9pm would be good, like a Jazz concert on the foreshore or a symphony or some fireworks, or all of the above.

Keep up the good work council.

Rock on forever St kilda festy, love this event.

I'm surprise more people haven't been commenting on this. I just hope St Kilda Fest stays around for a long time to come. I loved it when I was a teenager, now coming into my late twenties and I know I will still love it when I'm a grumpy old fart at 100. Keep up the good work! This is why I live in Port Phillip, because the council actually does good stuff like this.

keep your hands off it serge !

I think the Council need to understand that the event is paid for by residents and ask the question as to whether this event is really for the residents. Who does this festival serve?

As I have stated elsewhere on this site, I would support smaller localised art festival for the residents to come together.

How many of the responses here on this website are residents of the CoPP?

As a resident, I am really tired of hearing a small group of other residents whinge and moan about what St Kilda has always been and what it always should be. If they don't like it, why on earth did they move to the area? Constructive criticism about the festival and St Kilda is totally warranted - nothing is ever going to be perfect in this world we live in, but what I'm seeing on this forum is pure whinging. This is clearly a much larger issue of these voices being loud and irrational and god help us all if Council does actually take heed of them. To all of those people, if you don't want what you call 'disruption' there is plenty of coast line along the bay, perhaps it's time to move??

No temporary booze outlets in the middle of the road (eg)Upper Esplanade. No packaged booze sales (slabs etc) on the festival day. All drinking at licenced pub and cafes etc. Last year there was a problem in Fitzroy St with a bottle shops selling the stuff to the crowd who then had is topped out by the police 100m away.

The 96 tram should still got to Acland St with the pedestrians keeping to the footpaths and road usually used by cars. All the new platform tram stops (only) should be used for festival attendees. Perhaps a tram doing a loop for the day would be good (Fitzroy St, Upper Esplanade, Carlisle St, Brighton Rd and back to Fitzroy St). Why not use the historic old trams with the open sides for this. The new crossing at the west end of Fitzroy St to Catani Gardens need more work once you cross. The Catani Garden side is still a mess, the steps are to small (not wide enough) and dangerous, the areas around the WW1 memorial is a pedestrian choke point and dangerous.

I think the St Kilda Festival is great, I really don't understand what some people get so stressed about. The big Festival day only happens once a year and to me it seems really well managed. I always have a great time with my friends and have been going for years. I hope for the sake of the next generation of music lovers that it sticks around for another 30 years as it's a bit of a right of passage for Melbournians and alike! There aren’t many free events in Melbourne these days and to be able to come together as one community and celebrate Australia music in a great place like St Kilda….well, it's priceless really

I am CONVINCED St Kilda Festival is here to stay!!!! The pro's out weigh the con's by far!

The quick survey on the right needs to show the numbers who have voted as well as the percentage "pie" give that as at today only a few dozen have commented in the general section (this area) which surprises me after nearly a month online

Increase the number of stages on Festival Sunday and get rid of non arts or music related events. In their place showcase other performing arts such as theatre, dance, choirs, ensembles, circus and street performers. Nothing much happens on the Esplanade. This area could be filled with colour, movement, dancing, art displays, community stalls, roving performers, installations. Instead of fat tyre fliers, and V8 supercar simulators, the triangle area could be filled with cabaret, circus, vaudeville, merry-go-rounds, theatre sports, clowns, workshops.

Get rid of the licensed bars in O’Donnell Gardens and on the Esplanade. If people need a drink, there’s plenty of bars in Fitzroy and Acland Streets. Keep the public areas – streets, foreshore and parks – alcohol (and drug) free.

Improve safety and amenity for residents. Get serious about managing unruly behaviour. Use Festival information and promotion to set clear behaviour guidelines for public and private space (eg parties, drinking in the streets, urinating, blocking access) and increase police/security presence, including mounted police and sniffer dogs. Clamp down on unruly behaviour, drunkenness, and drugs. Fine offenders on the spot and/or throw them out of the Festival area.

I think the festival is a well run entity. I love that there is a large-scale well organized event on my doorstep. I do believe however, that more local artists (musicians, performers, visual artists) need to be involved. And I think the festival must work to once again win the hearts and minds of some locals.

I believe that this can be done by including a well structured and diverse free community arts program as an integral component to the festival structure. This program could employ local professional arts practicioners to run workshops and programs for the community as a lead up to the event. This could culminate in community performances / presentations during the festival.

St Kilda Festival doesnt have to be for everyone. It will never be all things to all people. It shouldnt even try to be. But 400,000 people like it. That makes it pretty popular! In fact, it makes it the most popular single day event in the country. Larger attendance than the Cup, larger attendance than the GF, larger... attendance than NYE in the CBD. People vote with their feet. If you dont like it, dont go, its probably not for you. But that doesnt mean everyone else shouldnt enjoy it. Its the biggest outdoor free music event in the country. Its extremely poular with people 16 - 35 years. It has its place, it's loved, it works. Like all good festivals it has been evolving and changing for 30 years just like St Kilda itself. I hope it evolves and changes for at least another 30 more!

Remember music is an art form and younger people love it. There aren't many opportunities to hear big Australian music artists for free but St Kilda Festival provides that.

Just good to remind ourselves how the demographics of St kilda are made up and why St Kilda Festival is so popular.

The Festival caters to the majority. St Kilda is full of a disproportionate number of unmarried younger people. Just check out the stats below. The free live music St Kilda Festival programs works so well because younger unmarried people like it!

Age Statistics 3182 Melbourne

20 to 39 52% 33%

40 to 59 24% 28%

60+ 13% 17%

5 to 19 7% 14%

0 to 4 3% 7%

Family Statistics - Top 5 3182 Melbourne

Never Married 59% 33%

Married 24% 51%

Divorced 9% 7%

Widowed 4% 6%

Separated 3% 3%

Taken from Domain.com.au Suburb Profile

I'm a bit concerned about the amount of people here claiming some kind of ownership over St Kilda as a holy resident. What are we really saying here except that these people have the right to vote a council in or out, which is not the point?

I'm not a resident of St Kilda, but maybe I have been before, and maybe I will be again, or maybe I'd like to start a business there. So maybe it belongs to everyone and everyone's opinion counts? And of course the festival is held in public spaces which means, you guessed it, they belong to the public! Not only residents, although maybe you could try some locked gates so bogans can keep out in future.

In actual fact I would like to point out that in fact I also help pay for the festival, through arts victoria which funds it and is the state government. I dare say I also fund it through my foxtel subscription. And I even fund it through the parking tickets I buy at least once a week to park in "your" fine suburb.

And before someone replies that residents are more important because they are so horribly upset by the noise and the behvaiour of other people, please try and put this one day aside for the sake of what the festival means to people before you ruin not only the festival but st kilda itself. St kilda is great not because of the people who live there (hard to believe I know) but because of the gatherings that happen there, the history, the places to go see music, the beach...shall I go on? And we all have a responsibility to ourselves and our kids to keep it great.

Love love love the festival! CoPP festival team do an AMAZING job managing it, so congratulations!! It must feel fantastic to know that you contribute so much to all the people that attend each year. The reason people come every year is because they love it, they love the music, the atmosphere, the celebration! So please don't feel unappreciated because as you well know, resident groups have been trying to straighten up st kilda for a very long time. Like all the poor old things that bought cheap houses in Greeves St and then expected the prostitutes to go away. Don't forget the people that buy houses near loud bars and live music venues and then complain about the noise. Angry residents are also a part of st kilda, it takes all kinds to keep interesting! I have met some of these people over the years and I've listened to the complaints, but I see most of their faces at the festival each year! They enjoy it too otherwise they would go somewhere else that day.... So just think, if you bring joy to angry residents even for an hour or two, how great is that?!

Your team improve and adapt the festival every year and I'm sure you always will!

The St Kilda Festival is held at the wrong time of the year. St Kilda is full of visitors already in Summer and with climate change the weather is getting hotter in Summer. After the festival much of the foreshore vegetation is trampled under foot too. Have it in Spring or Autumn instead.

While this survey has been extended to 16 Nov 09 there are still two referenced to the closing date being 09 Nov 09 on the Survey site and the PPCC homepage link. Need fixing - attention to detail.

The festival in its current format may once have been useful for “putting St Kilda on the map” in terms of local venues and restaurants, but this is no longer necessary. For many traders it is “the worst day of the year”.

The live music scene has already — DESPITE the focus of the festival over the past decade or more — essentially migrated from St Kilda to other parts of Melbourne.

Benefits of the festival: I don’t see the current format as offering anything in the way of benefits. The Live N Local events are 'nice enough', but for me do not offset the horror of the scale of the invasion & the alcohol-fuelled nature of Festival Sunday. If the festival was primarily a Live N Local type of event, or a Festival Sunday GENUINELY tried to cater to all generations then PERHAPS it would have the virtue of uniting disparate elements of our community. (By genuinely I mean catered equally to all generations, not mainly rock or dance music with an odd classical or jazz performance.) Generally I think everything the festival offers can be easily obtained elsewhere (live music, bars, restaurants, crowds) or on another occasion (the beach, St Kilda parklands). I don’t think Melbourne’s 18-30 year olds need any more encouragement to ‘party’, let alone Council-sponsored encouragement.

I hope Council doesn’t give too much weight to the views of the 18-30 demographic when determining the future of the festival. This is the one demographic which already faces an extensive choice in terms of activities and venues in St Kilda and the nearby areas of Chapel Street and the city. Commercial interests already overwhelmingly target and cater to this demographic. It seems to me Council could offer a far more valuable service to its community if it found ways to unite the “diverse” elements of our community rather than to further emphasize its generational differences, and in my view anything which is targeted primarily at the 18-30 demographic is actually fostering and enabling alienation of disparate elements of our community. I imagine 18-30 year olds feel differently.

Impacts: Trade for many businesses is greatly reduced; many residents leave town; there are costs & inconvenience associated with litter and broken glass; anti-social behaviour (largely alcohol/drug-related) in terms of urination, noise, vandalism, litter, some violence, cars blocking egress and difficulties getting in or out of the neighbourhood. In other words, significantly reduced amenity for residents ranging from inconvenience to discomfort and in some cases a negative impact on health & well-being.

Note — it is worth considering the difference in atmosphere and crowd behaviours associated with the 2006 Commonwealth Games events in St Kilda/Melbourne and the usual atmosphere & behaviours on Festival Sunday. It’s not large numbers of people per se, but the nature of the event and kinds of behaviours this constructs and condones.

I see the alcohol-related/partying behaviours of the 18-30 year demographic, and the consequences of these behaviours, as being THE single greatest problem in the “interface between residential and visitor impact” and thus believe any Council-supported festival needs to be:

· relevant and appealing to all generations

· one in which the relationship between the festival and alcohol is non-existent or extremely indirect (ie, little to do with rock or dance music)

In other words, I believe the Council cannot in good conscience support the current format of the festival.

If we do have to put up with an alcohol/drug-soaked event then, yes, I want to see everything possible done to encourage behavioural changes.

The claim that Festival Sunday is important because it nurtures local musicians is in my view exaggerated as we know there are many other venues and avenues for emerging bands or musicians, particularly with today’s technology and the connectedness of the online world, and a significant number of other festivals in Australia.

Indirect costs: Many residents pay to leave their homes for the weekend. Some may need to pay for repair to damage.

Re: sustainability - my view of sustainability, in no particular order or priority, is that it is founded on health & well-being, respect for others, diversity, care for the environment and conservation of resources and that it works to further nurture these principles in the form of outcomes. I don’t see that Festival Sunday is founded on these principles or that it achieves any of these outcomes. I don’t see anything all that sustainable about a festival in which people of (predominantly) one age demographic are implicitly encouraged to drink alcohol — and rock or dance music & alcohol/drugs DO go together — at licensed venues if not council-sponsored bars, or eat junk food from concession stands/vans, and where many of the attendants (& indeed in some ways festival organizers) behave with little regard or respect for the local environment, local people or people from other demographics.

• To me the tone and dynamics of this forum replicate/echo Festival Sunday itself with the crowd of festival-goers colonizing and dominating St Kilda’s public space. Some of the excitement generated is respectful and inclusive, but it is underscored by a significant sense of belligerent entitlement and exclusion — “the festival is ours, St Kilda is ours, and if you don’t like it you should move”.

I find this sense of belligerent entitlement to be very hostile. I have lived in this area for 20 years. How have we got to the point where I can be told that because I do not conform to a particular demographic, or support a particular and deeply problematic event, I do not belong in the streets of my neighbourhood, my community, my home?

Recently I attended a meeting in which there was serious discussion with festival organizers as to the possible installation of temporary fencing on Festival Sunday to prevent festival-goers from urinating on residential property. At that point I felt like tearing my hair out in frustration at the absurdity of it all. Why are we even considering the continuation of this festival when this is the level to which things have descended? Why the persistence with ever-increasing efforts and forms of damage limitation in the face of such behaviours? So that people can have “fun”????? Is there no other source of fun in Melbourne these days???? Why does Council regard residential amenity to be so low on its list of priorities that the provision of “fun” continues in the face of such disrespectful and appalling behaviour? How have we got to the point where people think it is appropriate or acceptable for them to urinate on the gardens or walls of residents, or to drink or take drugs in the streets of a residential suburb?

If Council seriously and genuinely wishes to review the current format of the St Kilda Festival it will be necessary for those engaged in the review process to spend face-to-face time with concerned residents to hear their concerns. This forum is not an adequate vehicle for the expression of such concerns, and its design and nature are suited primarily to a young age demographic. I find the nature of the forum to be belittling in the way it shapes and constrains responses, and in relation to the hostility expressed by some participants. It is an unpleasant vehicle which I am unhappily utilizing in the possibly vain attempt to have my views heard. If those conducting the review consider face-to-face meetings with other “stakeholders” to be necessary yet fail to offer the same consideration to residents it will seem their agenda is loaded and the review is not genuine.

Some questions I hope the review process considers:

1. If the festival is, in part, designed for the promotion of St Kilda, at what point will St Kilda be regarded as being sufficiently ‘on the map’? My guess would be that most international visitors to Melbourne already come to St Kilda, and that almost every Melburnian already knows what St Kilda has to offer.

Similarly, the population of Melbourne is growing rapidly but the bounds of St Kilda, a long-established and densely-populated suburb, are contained. How is the suburb of St Kilda expected to cope with an increasing number of visitors in the coming years, particularly during the warmer months of the year? How, in particular, will residents be expected to cope, and what impact/s will result in relation to the increasing number of visitors?

Has the time come for such ‘promotion’ of St Kilda to be abandoned as unnecessary? (It is worth noting here that for many, if not the majority, of traders it is a lost day or unwanted event.) Should St Kilda’s public prominence and visibility actually be reduced so as to enable a redirecting of visitor traffic to other CoPP or Melbourne localities?

2. Generational and societal changes in recent times are having a significant affect on the nature of visits to St Kilda. Commercial interests are also driving change. Visitors demonstrate, on the whole, less respect for residential property and amenity and a greater sense of entitlement to party and trash without regard for others or the environment. Is it even possible for an event which caters to hundreds of thousands of visitors and which incorporates alcohol &/or drug consumption as an integral part of the day to do anything but exacerbate this problem? (Yes, I understand that drug &/or alcohol consumption are not compulsory aspects of attendance but they DO take place, and very often to excess.)

Given that in many ways Festival Sunday sets the tone for visitor behaviour for the rest of the year, how are Council and festival organizers going to ‘raise the bar’ so that visitors understand they are welcome to share the pleasures of our suburb provided they do not litter, urinate, create public disturbances, vomit, jump on cars, drop glass bottles, block driveways etc? What are Council and festival organizers doing to ensure “Festival Sunday behaviours” and “partying” does not continue every warm evening on the beach?

Do these generational and societal changes render the current format of the festival inappropriate? Should Council re-conceive the event so that it has an inter-generational appeal, which offers the ancillary benefit of constructing a different set of behavioural expectations?

3. There is national recognition of problems associated with our culture’s binge-drinking phenomenon, particularly as it pertains to our youth. There is not, as yet, similar national recognition of problems associated with illegal drug usage, probably because illegal drug usage and its impacts are not as easily quantifiable. How does Council justify the promotion and sponsorship of a festival which implicitly encourages the drinking of alcohol or taking of illicit drugs, particularly among the demographic in which these behaviours are most problematic? (Yes, these behaviours are not a compulsory aspect of attendance but they are common, and part of the festival’s appeal.)

4. Given that sustainability is going to become an ever-increasing issue in the years ahead, should the festival be reconceived as a Sustainability Festival incorporating such things as slow food, local artists and musicians, ‘nana technology’ such as crafts, along with a range of activities relating to commodities such as bicycles, compost bins, etc etc. There could be, for instance, classes in the basics of bike maintenance, or composting, or the making of preserves, or organic vegetable growing. It could be a festival ‘by the locals, for the locals’ of the City of Port Phillip. Such a festival would offer local businesses and enterprises the opportunity to increase their profile within the City of Port Phillip, and offer residents the chance to engage in the community in new ways. It would also offer an opportunity for the various neighbourhoods of the City of Port Phillip to meet and engage in new ways, perhaps forging intra-city connections. This might indeed be a way in which Council could ‘strengthen our diverse and inclusive community’ as the event would have inter-generational appeal and any business or personal connections formed would be local.

5. Noise pollution is not simply an annoyance. It is an issue of health and well-being. Street festivals are not required to conform to SEPP N-2 legislation. St Kilda Festival organizers use SEPP N-2 as a guideline as it relates to decibel levels, but do not use it as a guideline for duration of exposure. Why does Council think it reasonable to subject residents to noise levels outside the SEPP N-2 guidelines? Why should residents who find the noise intolerable in form, volume and/or duration be forced out of their homes for the weekend? What about those who find the noise intolerable but are not able to escape their homes? Why is Council sponsoring this kind of noise pollution? Why are volume levels on Festival Sunday so much louder than other musical events in public spaces, such as Yalukit Willam Ngargee? Would the inclusion of more performance stages with lower volume levels be a way in which to address this problem?

It is the predominance of a particular demographic which is undesirable, as I see things.

I don't wish to see a festival attracting 200,000 to 300,000 55-70 year olds either. Or 200,000 to 300,000 5-10 year olds. Or 200,300 to 300,000 40-50 year olds.

Thinking about this, there's a rather big flaw in using this forum to gather feedback.

The younger demographic is far more fluent in using the web than the older demographics. As such, it's conceivable, that you will get more feedback from the younger demographic - who are likely to be in favour of the festival - than the older residents - who are likely to have trouble with the festival.

Also the format, which forces people to provide their feedback through only a very limited range of questions, prevents more complex and considered feedback from being given. This is because complex and considered feedback tends to be long and nuanced - and poor suited to be entered in a text box.

What is being done to address this imbalance?

I've lived in St.Kilda for about 30 years. I really enjoy the festival - the diverse music, the stalls, the crowds, the food, the setting on the beach. The children's entertainment is great if you've got small kids as well. We have taken overseas guests there and they've absolutely loved it. I look forward to it each year.

Sadly, we all have to put up with the Grand Prix. Albert Park Lake has ugly bits of construction for about 3 months. Traffic is disrupted along Lakeside Drive for 2 or 3 weeks. The whining noise is constantly loud and annoying and you can't shut it out. Goes on for days. The jets flying over make a horrendous noise and frighten small children and dogs. Nasty yobs gather in the streets and are generally obnoxious.

But if you don't like St.Kilda festival, well it's only 1 day. You can go out for the day. You'll be missing out though.

i love the crowds, the noise, the happiness on so many faces. The variety of the day and the people. This festival is something to be so proud of.

My fav fest in my fav suburb, my home.

Long live the fest!! such great memories from every year.