Fair St. Louis’ home sweet home: downtown or riverfront
Officials behind Fair St. Louis/Live on the Levee have a huge decision on their hands.
They must figure out which locale is best for the summer events that this year brought Black Crowes, Joss Stone, and Anthony Hamilton to town.
Flooding caused the annual events to move from their usual scenic perch on the riverfront to what was meant to be a temporary location downtown at Soldier’s Memorial Plaza, turning Live On the Levee into Live Off the Levee.
Now that the dust has cleared and the water has receded, organizers are deciding whether to return to the riverfront next summer or stay downtown.
Let’s look at this for a second.
Nothing beats a Live On the Levee concert, sitting near the base of the Arch with the river serving as a backdrop to one of your favorite performers. That ambiance, complete with fireworks, is nothing short of killer. But if the performer is especially popular, Live On the Levee is a logistical nightmare in terms of parking and just getting around.
Then there’s Soldier’s Memorial Plaza. It’s home to a number of other summer events, which makes it feel less than special. But there’s room for growth, and that appeals to the organizers.
Where do you think Fair St. Louis and Live On the Levee should take place next year?
Photo: Fireworks explode over the Mississippi River July 4 during Fair St. Louis
Photo credit: Emil Rasinski
Kevin C. Johnson has covered the St. Louis' music and nightlife scene for the past decade. 
I agree with you Kevin, there is nothing better than the ambiance of the Archgrounds. However, logistically, it is more than a nightmare. (Further proof why the Danforth Foundation’s plan for changes on the Archground should move forward as proposed!)
It should go without saying, we expect Slay & Co. to continue to provide hot hot acts as they have with SoulChild, India.Aire, Joss Stone and Anthony Hamilton–so the crowds will only continue to grow. We should also consider we will be hosting the MLB’s All-Star Games next July. Because there will be additional people in town, it would make sense to showcase our best backdrop, the Arch. But then again, that means additional people and more of those horrible crowds on the Levee trying to make it through the mess of the Levee.
Personally, I really liked the layout and flow of Soldier’s Memorial Plaza. Parking was much more plentiful and accessible and there was greater access also to Metrolink. Finally, there was just more room! I do wish though, that Slay & Co. would make access to Market easier, particularly at the end of the concert and as the fireworks begin. Create another access other than the one at 14th St.
Tough decisions!
Well, I personal detested the Soldiers memorial location.
Primarily because of the VIP section that made the show much less intimate unless you had the luck of getting one of those passes. We would show up right when the gates open, buying food and drink earlier than others, spending money earlier, SO THAT WE COULD STAND 50 FEET FROM THE STAGE?!?!?!?! BEHIND A FENCE?!?!?!?!?! Even the entertainment commented on how lame it was. If there has to be a VIP section, put it off to the side.
As well, the layout with the tree’s, and soundboard location etc prevented you from getting a good view when the crowds were large.
The Levee has an amphitheater affect that gives the crowd good sight lines and the ambiance was intense. I also rememeber the VIP section being to the left of the stage.
GO BACK TO THE LEVEE for gosh sakes!!!! GET RID OF THE VIP SECTION……VIP SECTION IS A TRAVESTY.
It needs to be on the levee/Arch grounds. The immediate downtown and Landing restaurants benefit from the extra business. And there is nothing like seeing fireworks under the Arch. St. Louis is in the top 10 when it comes to 4th of July fireworks. If it’s moved permanently to Soldier’s Memorial, I don’t think STL will remain on that list. It’s also safer in the sense that larger, better fireworks can be run on the Arch grounds. I tried to watch them from my apartment downtown the 2nd weekend and the AT&T bldg. totally blocked my view. And on the 4th of July, I actually felt a little badly for Joss Stone-about 15 minutes into her performance there was a MASS exodus from Soliers Memorial to the Arch grounds. Market and the neighboring streets were packed with people making the 10 block trek back to the Arch. More proof the party needs to stay on the Arch grounds!
I agree. The VIP section sucks. Even Grace Potter made a comment about the crowd being so far away from the stage. I know you have to appease your money contributors, but surely there is a better way? Anyway, my vote goes to the Archgrounds…and it’s such a great setting for this event! Just wish the parking wasn’t such a nightmare. C’mon St. Louis, let’s get behind Danforth’s changes to the Archground. It will be an awesome investment for this city. St. Louis has finally figured out that bringing music to the city is a really positive thing…so keep the ball rolling and lets keep the town rockin and rollin. Kudos to the organizers for bringing FREE music and such great bands to town. Black Crowes/Grace Potter was excellent!!
the fair should be full blast like in years past to coincide with what should be st. louis’ olympics, the all star game. all of the arch grounds should be used to showcase the city to the country and the world. i really dont know why slay isn’t puting a committee together to mobilize the city and downtown for the all star game.
soldiers memorial is nice but for next summer lets go back to the arch in full force.
I have not attended any Fair St. Louis events in the last five years due to the hassle of getting to and from the Arch grounds. We attended the Black Crowes and Rusted Root shows this year and found the Soldier’s Memorial setting to be almost perfect. We parked at City Hall and walked one block to the site, did not have to wait in line for a port-a-potty or a beer, and walked over to Washington afterward for a late bite. What a great experience. The only criticism I can offer is to echo the other comments about the VIP section. To completely cut off access to the stage is simply elitist and offensive. Other festivals place risers to the side for VIPs and allow true fans access to the stage - what’s wrong with that?
Thank you, Fair St. Louis and Celebrate St. Louis for this year’s shows. I will return next year, regardless of the location of Live on/off the Levee. You’ve shown me that you can put together an outstanding concert series.
Why is parking a problem? Is parking a problem for Cardinals games? I never thought so.
Heaven forbid you need to walk 2 to 4 blocks for a FREE concert. Is that really going to hurt anyone?
We’ve gotten really lazy if that’s what people choose to complain about.
Compare this with a NY Central Park concert (which is not free). Fans need to walk that distance inside the park, regardless of parking (which does not exist).
C’mon people, get your legs moving a tiny bit to enjoy FREE music under the Arch which is a perfect ampitheater setting.
I loved it when they had it at the arch. When they moved it to soldiers memorial I only went to one concert (OAR) and refused to go back. I had several complaints with the memorial location. First we showed up right before OAR went on. We went to go buy a couple of beers and it took us 45 minutes to get through the line. I missed three quarters of the concert. Also when we finally got the beer we went up to watch the concert and could barely see. The nice thing about the arch is that the steps provide and unblocked view to the stage. This is a no doubter. Go back to the arch!!
I vote for the Arch Grounds as well. I had to walk just as far after finding a parking space (each time) anyway. For Anthony Hamilton I couldn’t see a danggone thang since I was in the zone between the soundbooth and the big screen. I didn’t go back for the others based on that. Live ON the LEVEE please.
I love it at the levee! Please bring it back to the archgrounds (& reduce/revise the VIP seating so that everyone has a chance to have a good seat).