Greetings Friends,
Wow, what a July. We certainly had a hot time in the old town last month, but there were so many more things that made it good and special. Even though it was hot, there are many traditions that persevered and that is a testament to the great people of Modesto. There were huge crowds for the 151st 4th of July Parade, fans supported and cheered the last MoBand concert with George Gardner as conductor and those who live here know we always seem to get a nice breeze in the evening.
It’s so crazy now that Becky and I are already thinking about back to school times again now that our grandkids are approaching that elementary age. Not worrying as much as our kids are, but we are thinking about what they will need, but TK is still a year away. They are really making the most out of their pre-school time, when life is still really carefree. Next year will come soon enough and we need to make sure that the kids here in town go back to school with the resources they need and checking out the teachers wish lists. Having time with my family, kids and grandkids is the most important thing in my world.
I and my band Third Party had a blast playing in 10th St Plaza for the annual Music in the Plaza series. It was a beautiful night and as usual, we got the breeze and it was great to see people in the Plaza, the patios busy and people roaming the streets under the new 10th Street twinkle lights we put up for the summer. It felt good, but I feel there is more “we” all need to do.
Over the past year, I have seen some of our favorite places like Ralston’s Goat, that were true champions of live music, fall off the map. As we are planning the 25th Anniversary MAMA Awards, it got me thinking about what we need to do to make our local music scene exciting again. This scene is kind of symptomatic of some of the other creative scenes that need a pick me up. What do we do as a community to make sure that there are places to play. How to we make sure that our local bars, cafes and venues see a return on their investment to hire bands? What do we need to do to really be a creative city, where musicians and artists can flourish and the arts are considered as important to our cultural relevance? I invite ideas and we ask some of these questions in our Big View this month. There are so many things that make Modesto great, but every once in a while, we need to take stock, see where we are and change course how to make it better. I am one of those people that feels that everything is broken in some way and there is always a better way to do it. How can we embrace change, and have some clear direction of what can be done and measure some outcomes? Are you with me on this?
I am a downtown fan. I love downtowns everywhere I visit. I look for ideas and try to bring those back here. I don’t stay in the suburbs, but walk the streets of downtown, where these cities were born. Our Downtown needs a push. There are zones of Modesto that don’t seem to connect. The east / west traffic north of Briggsmore and the Standiford / Sylvan corridor seem busy. The north /south of Oakdale Rd. is hoppin’, and the area around the mall and Pelendale is always busy. What does downtown Modesto need to do to get the mojo and energy back? Lighting? Safety? More events? Festivals? More retail? More music? More restaurants? More offices don’t do the right thing as they are closed and roll up at night and weekends. I want to find solutions so we need to find the right questions. I am working on how we can make Rockin’ Holiday, May the 4th and other things we do, better, more inclusive and exciting for Modesto. I would love your ideas.
A special acknowledgement to Saul Trujillo and the Brenden Theatres who bring hundreds of thousands of people to downtown annually, and operate every day of the week. How can we do a better job to engage these visitors? This is really an important economic engine. This month we celebrate Jeff Reed of the Reed Family Companies for all they do to improve Modesto. Learn about our Champion Jeff in this issue.
This is all about sustainability. How do we help our locally owned businesses thrive. How do we make a place that is exciting to attract our next generation? How do we develop the next wave of philanthropy and get more people involved? Our locally owned business are the key to cultural independence.
This month we celebrate and thank Jeff Reed of the Reed Family Companies for all they do to improve Modesto. Learn about our Champion Jeff in this issue as they are an example of a locally owned, family business that changes things both internationally and here at home.
We have so much going for us. Thanks to all that are donating in the many ways to the Graffiti USA Museum. This is a cultural game changer along with MoChiMu, the Gallo Center and the State Theatre. Modesto on Ice is planning their upcoming season to draw more people into downtown so let’s make the best of it. A very special thank you to the local business and organizations that advertise in Modesto allowing us to design, print and distribute 65,000 copies and mail 44,000 of those through US Mail. We are working hard to get positive news, events, ideas and discoveries out across our region.
And most of all, thank you for reading The View.
With Gratitude,
Chris Murphy, Founder & Publisher- ModestoView
chrism@modestoview.com<mailto:chrism@modestoview.com>
