Taste of Minnesota booted off Harriet island

Through its ups and downs, Taste of Minnesota always was able to rely on the support of St. Paul, home of the annual festival for its nearly 30-year existence.

On Wednesday, though, the city dealt it a bruising blow: It ousted Taste from Harriet Island because it hasn't paid its bills. Now, the city will be looking for a new July 4th event to be staged at the riverfront venue.

International Event Management, the company that owns Taste, owes the city's Parks and Recreation Department at least $23,652. The bill was due Sept. 2.

The company also owes St. Paul police $87,000 for security. In addition, Richie Holdings Inc. has filed a claim in Ramsey County conciliation court against festival organizers, alleging it is owed $7,802, and the Metropolis Foundation, a youth rugby nonprofit, sued organizers alleging it wasn't paid $12,636 for working the event. Some food vendors also were asked to delay cashing checks because there wasn't money to cover them.

Taste has been a midsummer tradition with its food, music and fireworks. Hundreds of thousands of people have attended the July 4th weekend event. It became synonymous with Minnesota's capital, eschewing the bigger city across the Mississippi River.

Whether it was the economy, weather, a higher admission price or something else, the festival struggled in recent years.

Organizers were warned in mid-September that the city wanted a repayment plan by Monday, but that didn't happen. Instead, the organizers asked for more time. That didn't fly.

"In our phone conversation Monday, October 4, 2010, you offered no details or certainty as to if or when a proposed plan would be forthcoming, and therefore we see no benefit to either party in granting your request for a 30-day extension," Mike Hahm, Parks and Recreation director, wrote on Wednesday in a letter to Andy Faris, managing partner of International Event Management.

When contacted Wednesday evening, Faris said: "We asked for an extension and received a response."

In the letter, Hahm said the city will begin looking at other options for events at Harriet Island for next year's July 4th weekend.

That makes the future of Taste, at least as it has come to be known, unclear. The event might be considered a St. Paul tradition, but it's a privately owned business.

Faris has said his company has been working diligently to resolve the issues, but he has offered no details. He declined to comment Wednesday when asked about the future of the festival.

The event lost money this year despite an updated lineup of diverse musical acts and food vendors. Total attendance during the four-day run dropped by 20 percent compared with previous years. Less-than-ideal weather and higher admission prices were two reasons cited for the decline.

The city will go through a collection process to get its money, said Brad Meyer, Parks and Recreation spokesman. If that fails, the department will need to absorb the costs in its budget, about half of which is directly taxpayer-funded.

A history of Taste

The festival was the brainchild of two longtime St. Paul boosters, Ron Maddox and Dick Broeker. Inspired by the long-running Taste of Chicago, they wanted to create a family event that would draw people to the capital city.

It started on the Capitol grounds and remained there until it outgrew the space, moving to Harriet Island in 2003. The city has spent millions of dollars to restore the riverfront park, and officials consider it a premium event site.

Over the years, the festival has been panned for stale musical acts and generic food. There have been financial struggles in previous years when attendance lagged, often due to uncooperative weather. Sponsors have come and gone and, on occasion, crime was a concern. But it always has been a favorite for fireworks watchers.

The event was free until 2009, when International Event Management took over. The new owners made immediate changes, updating the food and band lineups and improving the sound system. But the admission charge -- $20 to $30 this year -- was hard for some to swallow.

Chris Havens • 612-673-4148