THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, September 11, 1994 TAG: 9409090292
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 07 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Bill Reed
LENGTH: Medium: 75 lines
Mother Nature huffed and puffed, but couldn't blow away the Labor Day weekend American Music Festival.
For the most part, hardy beachfront visitors still boogied 'til they buckled to the rhythms of rock or reggae.
Organizers say 10,000 to 13,000 people managed to filter through formidable traffic barriers on and near the Oceanfront to attend major concerts given by the Beach Boys, Billy Ray Cyrus, or those long-time local favorites, the Temptations and the Four Tops.
They were the featured acts of the weekend and they performed sometimes in near-hurricane conditions on a 40-by-138-foot steel frame stage erected on the beach at Fifth Street.
On a stretch of sand to the north of it, concert goers - many of them swathed in sweaters and jackets - could sprawl on blankets, kick back in beach chairs or get up and dance, which many of them did.
Balconies on nearby hotels were lined with spectators who jammed with the headliners.
Chris Casey, special events director for Virginia Beach Events Unlimited, described the weekend as a success, but conceded that the weather had a definite impact on attendance and satellite stages at 24th, 20th and 15th streets.
Blood Sweat & Tears, a national act, packed the 24th Street stage on Friday night. Spectators spilled onto the sidewalk, the Boardwalk and onto the parking ramp of the adjacent Station One hotel.
The next night rain and blustery winds brought on the cancellation of the Stillwater concert at the same stage. In all, eight concerts at the satellite stages had to be cancelled over the weekend, said Casey.
Henry Richardson, president of the Virginia Beach Hotel and Motel Association called the festival a ``home run.'' He said it should be repeated next year on a grander scale.
Councilman Linwood Branch, who represents the Beach Borough, called the event ``a keeper.'' The performances ``should give a bit of momentum to the (proposed) amphitheater,'' he said, alluding to the city's plans to build a 15,000-to-20,000-seat entertainment complex within the next two years.
Meanwhile, on Atlantic Avenue and on streets adjacent to the Oceanfront, a heavy police presence kept much of the usual inbound Labor Day weekend traffic at bay.
This meant that a lot of college kids and some potential trouble-makers had to look elsewhere to frolic.
However, there were enough of both on hand at the Oceanfront during the weekend to give the cops goose pimples.
Somehow they managed to filter into the Oceanfront on bikes, on foot or even in cars.
At one point late Sunday afternoon, police banned bicycles as well as auto traffic on Atlantic Avenue as crowds of youths formed on sidewalks from the 1800 to the 2400 blocks. They obstructed normal pedestrian traffic on the walkways and milled around entrances to resort shops and restaurants.
Tension mounted until police finally rid the street of cars and bicycles and began dispersing gatherings in each block.
Mercifully, the evening came to a peaceful close.
There were complaints from visitors and locals alike that the police presence was too heavy, too restrictive.
Like a police state, man - the Gestapo, the refrain went.
Baloney.
If the cops hadn't been on the Oceanfront in force, the city might just as well have handed the streets over to the punks and said goodbye to any future holiday music festival plans or anything else.
It's just that simple. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by DAVID B. HOLINGSWORTH
Henry Richardson, president of the Virginia Beach Hotel and Motel
Association said the music festival should be repeated next year.
by CNB