Elsie Hotpepper Helped Me Learn How Fort Worth Became The Top Downtown In America

Yesterday Elsie Hotpepper text messaged me telling me to check out the Sundance Square Facebook page.

I always do what Elsie tells me to do.

I'd already blogged about the subject Elsie was pointing me to in a blogging from early September titled Mr. & Mrs. Galtex Are In Argentina Where They Learned Fort Worth Has America's Top Downtown.

In that blogging I wondered what demented entity deemed Fort Worth's to be the Top Downtown in America.

Well.

That to which Elsie Hotpepper pointed me quickly had me understanding that no entity deemed Fort Worth's to be the Top Downtown in America. This bogus claim is just one more example of the same embarrassing propaganda puffery that pervades this part of America

The Sundance Square Facebook page had a link to a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article titled Sundance Square wins top downtown award for new plaza.

So, while it may be sort of true that an entity did award an aspect of downtown Fort Worth an award, that entity did not in any way indicate that Fort Worth has the Top Downtown in America. The award was for downtown Fort Worth's tiny plaza known as Sundance Square Plaza.

The entity making this prestigious award which has sent Fort Worth into a spasm of city wide celebrating is the International Downtown Association. Yeah, I'd never heard of it either.

You can go to the IDA website and read the list of their 2014 Pinnacle Award winners. Note the words "list" and "winners" indicating more than one Pinnacle Award winner.

Multiple towns won Pinnacle Awards from the IDA. But only one of those towns, near as I can tell, is spewing propaganda claiming that due to this award that town's downtown is the Top Downtown in America. Most towns have a real newspaper, not a propaganda purveyor like the Star-Telegram, so such nonsense does not get spewed.

Three paragraphs from the Star-Telegram article...

“Each year, the IDA awards jury honors the very best programs and projects in each category to recognize great work and most importantly to set the standard for best practice in our industry. The Sundance Square Plaza is a wonderful example for all cities to emulate.”

The 1-acre plaza, which opened in November, received one of two Pinnacle Awards. The other went to the Wichita Downtown Development Corp. for a $500,000 downtown master plan. Seven merit awards were also given.

“The addition of the plaza created a centerpiece in downtown Fort Worth that has quickly become a destination for North Texas residents and visitors from all around the world,” Johnny Campbell, president and CEO of Sundance Square, said in a statement.

So, Fort Worth is sharing an award category with Wichita and that town's downtown master plan? And Fort Worth's teeny downtown plaza is something all cities should emulate? Yes, I can see towns all over the planet copying Fort Worth's little downtown plaza, except for all those towns which already have downtown plazas. And most ridiculous, this plaza has become a destination for the people of North Texas and visitors from around the world?

Sundance Square Plaza is a perfectly fine thing, I'm not suggesting otherwise. And it is a huge improvement over the parking lots which Fort Worth's few out of town visitors thought were Sundance Square. But this plaza is NOT some sort of special destination drawing anyone to it.

How did the International Downtown Association learn about the wonder which is Sundance Square Plaza I am sure you are wondering.

Well.

Apparently Sundance Square submitted Sundance Square Plaza for consideration for this prestigious award which permits a town to claim to be the Top Downtown in America.

Now, I really do not think there is anything wrong about entering something you represent into any sort of award competition.

However.

You can read the Sundance Square Plaza Award Submission document in its entirety, a reading of which will have you seeing the award submission is full of the patented propaganda puffery of the sort the Fort Worth Star-Telegram is notorious for.

Two paragraphs from the Award Submission propaganda to illustrate the propaganda point....

Sundance Square Plaza has been an enormous success, attracting thousands of visitors weekly, including many families with children. The project has also boosted the success of restaurants and retail stores in Sundance Square, led to new soft-goods retail leases in adjacent buildings and helped attract commercial leases in the new office buildings. In its first six months of operation, Sundance Square Plaza hosted an elaborate Christmas celebration, a huge (even though unadvertised) New Year’s Eve Celebration and the four-day MAIN ST. Fort Worth Arts Festival. In March, ESPN used Sundance Square Plaza as its broadcast headquarters during coverage of the NCAA Final Four. The Plaza also hosts regular events such as morning yoga, outdoor movie nights for families and a free Sunday Jazz Series.

Here’s another proof of success: out-of-town developers are asking DFWI, “How close can I get to the Plaza?” Hotel and multifamily developers are now jockeying for position near the Plaza. A modestly performing, historic Class C office building one block away has been purchased, and plans are underway to convert it into a boutique hotel. New market pressure has been added to the center of downtown, adding demand four streets away where there was none before – purely because the plaza is perceived as such a valuable attraction and developers want their projects to be within walking distance.

This plaza is one acre in size. Do you know how big one acre is? Not very big. This little plaza attracts thousands of visitors weekly? Including many families? With children?

I think Mr. Galtex, he being who first let me know that Fort Worth now had the Top Downtown in America, said it best when he opined the following....

For the life of me, I've never been able to figure out why the Fort Worth locals are not content to simply say they have a nice downtown, a good this, and a swell that, instead of labeling everything with ridiculous superlatives. Fort Worth would be even nicer without a chip on its shoulder.

A Sad Call From Mom Has Me Thinking About Aunt Mike

On Thursday my cousin Kurt, aka Freddy, emailed me because he'd lost my mom and dad's phone number. Kurt told me his mom, my Aunt Mike, my mom's little sister, was in the final stages of Alzheimer's, systems failing.

I emailed Kurt back with mom and dad's phone numbers and called mom.

And now, only a few days later mom just called me to tell me that Kurt had called while they were out and left a voice mail with the news that Aunt Mike had died.

The last time I saw Aunt Mike was August 11, 2001, at my mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary party. No one but two of my nephews knew I was driving myself solo back to Washington for the party. This seems so recent, but it was over 13 years ago.

I knew I took pictures at the anniversary party. I did not remember if I took a picture of Aunt Mike. I also did not remember that I'd made a webpage of the pictures I took that day. There was only one picture in which Aunt Mike sort of showed up. Above, that is Aunt Mike sitting on the couch. As you can see Aunt Mike was a blonde.

I was sort of shocked a few years back when mom called to tell me they'd had a relative visit who had stopped to see Aunt Mike at her home location in Bend, Oregon, to be surprised to learn Aunt Mike was in an assisted care type place due to Alzheimer's.

Aunt Mike was always in good shape. She ran marathons. At mom and dad's 50th Aunt Mike was firing on all cylinders and was as amusing as she'd always been. I recollect Aunt Mike asking me about the move to Texas. I recollect saying the thing I found that I liked the best was the buffer from relatives. Aunt Mike laughed and said something like why do you think I lived all those years up in Alaska?

After learning Aunt Mike had Alzheimer's mom tasked me with getting in contact with cousin Kurt. On the way up to Washington the summer of 2013 mom and dad visited Aunt Mike in Bend. Aunt Mike did not recognize them.

It was just a couple months ago I got a text message from mom and dad telling me mom's oldest brother had died. A short while after that I called mom to ask if anyone had sent her Uncle Willard's obituary. No one had. I asked mom if she wanted me to read it to her. She did.

Reading Uncle Willard's obituary to my mom was one of those scenarios one could not have imagined 25 years ago. As in, 25 years ago the idea that 25 years hence I'd be living in Texas, walking distance from Lee Harvey Oswald's grave site, using this thing called the Internet to read Uncle Willard's obituary to my mom in Arizona, well, nothing about that scenario would have made any sense 25 years ago.

Looking at the pictures I took at mom and dad's 50th I was a bit surprised how many of those in the pictures are no longer with us. My mom's mom, Grandma Vera, my dad's brother, Uncle Mel, Aunt Mike, Glen & Katie. All gone.

Sad.......

Tarrant County's First Retail Marijuana Store Did Not Open Yesterday

Reading my old hometown zone's news online this morning I learned the county I lived in in Washington, Skagit, has opened its first retail marijuana store, in the little town of Conway.

Meanwhile in the state I am currently in, Texas, there are no retail marijuana stores open anywhere.

And a 19 year old Texan named Jacob Lavoro is currently in extreme jeopardy, facing a life sentence, because he baked some brownies which used marijuana as an ingredient.

Something seems way out of whack when in one part of America you can open a store to sell marijuana, while in another part of America you can be arrested and put in prison for the rest of your life for baking special brownies.

The First September Saturday Rolling Over A Big Gateway Park Snake Before An Organic Visit To Town Talk

My handlebars were back at their favorite Gateway Park photo op location on this first September Saturday.

I seem to see far fewer snakes than I used to see at the various outer world locations that I frequently frequent.

I have rarely had a snake encounter in Gateway Park, but I had one today.

A big snake encounter.

The snake was brown in color. With no diamond pattern like a rattlesnake. I don't think this was a venomous brand of slitherer. We seemed to have startled each other with both of us quickly going in opposite directions.

Today's was the coolest bike ride in awhile. As in the temperature was not in the 90s or over 100. My phone told me it was 86 when I stuck the phone in the bike bag.

I was a bit ambivalent about going to Town Talk today after last Saturday's Labor Day Weekend Town Talk traffic jam. So, I started the wheel rolling thinking I wouldn't go to Town Talk, but by the time I finished the wheel rolling the endorphins had me sedated enough to change my mind.

There was no traffic jam at Town Talk today. I got a gallon of organic skim milk. What makes milk organic I wondered when I put the milk in the cart. Do the cows eat only organic grass?

In addition to the organic milk I got a bag of barbecue flavored sweet potato chips and whole grain sausage and cheese kolaches. I don't think I've had a kolache since the last time I was in West.

And that was a long time ago.

The rest of what I got at Town Talk were vegetables, with the only interesting vegetable being hatch green chiles. So, I guess I will be doing some chile roasting.

Some Questions About The Trinity River Vision Boondoggle & J.D. Granger's Beer Drinking

I am fairly certain that is not J.D. Granger having himself a Cannonball, Allergeez, Real Good or IPf'nA beer at PIB.

I do not know where it is J.D. Granger was whilst guzzling beer under a big sombrero.

A couple days ago in a blogging titled The Futile Search For The Missing Pavilion, Island & Panther At Fort Worth's Panther Island Pavilion I neglected to mention that Panther Island Brewing refers to itself as PIB.

Prior to forgetting to mention PIB I forgot to mention that Panther Island Pavilion has taken to referring to itself as PIP.

I do not know if Gladys Knight has been signed yet to appear at one of the PIP's many musical festivals.

Speaking of J.D. Granger. And who isn't? This morning I got an email asking me how much Mr. Granger is paid as Executive Director of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle for his music festival and flood control project building expertise.

The emailer also made the point that with the Boondoggle being built in slow motion that paying all the Boondoggle Visioneers all those extra years would seem to be greatly adding to the expense of this public works project the public has never voted for.

I thought this particular emailer raised some interesting points.

Years ago a Boondoggle insider emailed me due to being upset about what she was seeing up close in Boondoggle Headquarters. Everyone getting new iPhones, iPads, leased cars, junkets, expense accounts, hotel stays in Dallas, I forget what else.

Just remembered another, that being the big booze supply kept at Boondoggle Headquarters.

So, does anyone know how much J.D. Granger is being paid per year in salary plus perks? It would seem this must be public information, what with the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle sort of being a public agency, even though the public is not allowed to vote on anything related to the Boondoggle.

What is the total spent on salaries and perks for all the employees of the Boondoggle? It takes a lot of employees to run all those music festivals at the top music venue in the Dallas Metroplex.

So, the aforementioned emailer's point is a good one. What with the Boondoggle boondoggling along way longer than I think anyone anticipated back when the Boondoggle began, with very little to show for all these years of Boondoggling, paying all these Boondogglers all these extra years obviously has greatly added to the cost of the Boondoggle.

And as long as we are on the subject of the slow motion Boondoggle, how come there is no questioning, that I have made note of, in any of what passes for local media in the Fort Worth zone, asking why there is no project timeline for this extremely vital flood control project?

As in when is it we are finally going to be safe from a flooding Trinity River in the downtown Fort Worth zone?

Oh.

Is that why there is no urgency regarding the building of this extremely vital flood control project? Because the fact of the matter is there is no urgency because this flood control project is not even remotely vital.

Apparently what is vital is providing Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats, music festivals on an imaginary island with an imaginary pavilion, a drive-in movie theater, freshly brewed beer, ice skating, wake boarding and a riverside restaurant, because after all these years that is all you have to see when you look at the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle....

Today In Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area I Found No Indian Ghost Criminal Activity

My regularly scheduled barely post dawn swim went well today, and was particularly refreshing due to the fact this was the first morning in a long time that the pool felt cool.

A harbinger of more cool to come.

I hope.

I really have not been getting enough exercise of late, so I decided to roll my mechanized wheels to Arlington to roll my non-mechanized wheels with the Indian Ghosts who haunt the Village Creek Natural Historical Area..

Soon after crossing the Village Creek dam bridge, on my way to the still brown and green Village Creek Blue Bayou, I saw the scene you see above.

Yellow crime scene tape snaking its way the full length of the open field where every once in awhile soccer games are played.

Due to my bike's fear of goatheads flattening a tire I left the bike on the paved trail and wandered off to see if I could figure out what the crime was that required so much yellow tape.

I was fairly certain the Indian Ghosts had not been up to any deadly mischief.

It did not take much sleuthing to discover the reason for the taping. Trucks are using the soccer field as a road, to get to another road which leads to Village Creek, where I suspect a big pipeline is being fixed or replaced. I did not investigate further, so I could only surmise, based on previously having seen a rather old looking pipe at that location.

Continuing on I crossed the Village Creek dam bridge where I soon saw a lady in the distance walking her dog. I vocalized my usual "coming up behind you" so as not to startle the walker. But, the vocalizing caused quite a startled reaction of the sort that I think it might be the type thing that is the origin of the jumped out of her skin cliche.

Maybe the lady thought the disembodied voice was one of the Indian Ghosts haunting her, hence the frightened reaction.

When I neared the jumpy lady I slowed down and apologized profusely for startling her. She laughed politely and said something like "I am very high strung".

So, I guess being jumpy was just her nature and had nothing to do with thinking she was hearing from an Indian Ghost.

With no further incidents I had myself a mighty fine bike ride and then I was off to ALDI to get butter along with some other needed stuff....

Visiting My Favorite Turtle In Oakland Lake Park While The Fosdick Lake Fountain Sputters

Today I was back at Oakland Lake Park to walk around Fosdick Lake with my favorite turtle, that big guy you see politely posing on his home log.

The Fosdick Fountain is still sputtering like a Yellowstone geyser gone berserk. I am starting to think maybe the Fosdick Fountain came back to life all on its own, and is now slowly disappearing, also on its own.

I never have found any explanation of how this fountain suddenly came to be sputtering out in the middle of one of Fort Worth's pristine, signature lakes.

I wonder what the legions of tourists who flock to Fosdick Lake think is burbling out in the lake. A gas leak? A natural spring feeding the pristine lake? An underwater volcano erupting? A submarine rising to the surface?

As you can see, via the crystal clear Fosdick Lake water, even though the Fosdick Lake fountain is not operating at its full aerating potential, the water of Fosdick Lake is being more blue than is the norm for the early part of September, with only a few patches of green algae growth coloring the blue.....

The Futile Search For The Missing Pavilion, Island & Panther At Fort Worth's Panther Island Pavilion

Yesterday I was perusing last week's Fort Worth Weekly when I came upon what sort of looked like an article, but was instead, I think, an advertisement for the latest addition to the Fort Worth playground currently known as Panther Island, with that latest addition being known as Panther Island Brewing.

Panther Island Brewing brews beer. You can go to their Panther Island Brewing website to find out what type beer they brew and how you can find yourself sampling some Panther Island Brewing beer.

Panther Island Brewing got me wondering how many things have now been added to the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle using the Panther Island name, in addition to Panther Island Pavilion.

Thinking about the absurdity of Panther Island Pavilion got me wondering about the Pavilion part of the name. As in, what is it on the banks of the Trinity River, in the area misrepresentatively called an island, which is a pavilion?

That had me Googling "pavilion" which soon had me reading the Wikipedia Pavilion article where I learned....

In architecture a pavilion (from French, "pavillon", from Latin "papilio") has two primary meanings. It can refer to a free-standing structure sited a short distance from a main residence, whose architecture makes it an object of pleasure. Large or small, there is usually a connection with relaxation and pleasure in its intended use. A pavilion built to take advantage of a view is referred to as a gazebo.

In its other primary meaning, in a symmetrical range of buildings in the classical styles, where there is a main central block – the corps de logis – the wings may end in pavilions that are emphasized in some fashion, in order to provide a full stop to the composition, like a period at the end of a sentence.

Okay, I admit I am no architectural genius, as witnessed, for example, by my failure to understand why the Kimbell Art Museum designed by Louis Kahn is a work of architectural genius achieving icon status recognized by those who know about the building in the art world, but, even though I clearly am no architectural genius, I really don't see how anything about that which is called Panther Island Pavilion is a pavilion, according to the two meanings of the word referenced above.

Yes, I am aware that there is a certain standard of word aesthetics as practiced in Fort Worth where those aesthetics are such that words really don't have to have meaning. This type aesthetic is key to a propaganda operation.

So, where words have no meaning, you can have a Trinity River Vision where there is no discernible vision, originally foisted upon the public announced in a HUGE headline in Fort Worth's propaganda purveyor, the Star-Telegram, as "Trinity Uptown Project to Make Fort Worth the Vancouver of the South."

Or, where words have no meaning, you can have a sporting goods store foisted on the public, with that same propaganda purveyor proclaiming the sporting goods store would be the #1 tourist attraction in Texas.

Or, where words have no meaning, you can stick up signs in your downtown, for years pointing tourists to Sundance Square where there is (was) no square, til recently.

And then there is Panther Island and Panther Island Pavilion.

Well, we all know there is no island. There may never be an island. And even if the large pseudo island making ditch is ever dug it still will not be what anyone with respect for the meaning of words would call an island.

And now we learn there is no actual pavilion at Panther Island Pavilion.

What about the Panther part? I know this comes from a story way back early in the last century where, supposedly, a Dallas reporter visited downtown Fort Worth and then went back to Dallas where he reported that downtown Fort Worth was so lifeless and sleepy that a panther was taking a nap on the City Hall's steps. Or was it the Tarrant County Courthouse steps?

Do we actually know for certain this panther sleeping story actually happened? Or was this just Fort Worth propaganda of that era, serving some odd purpose in furthering the villainification of Dallas?

Now, I can surely see where a reporter from lively Dallas might visit downtown Fort Worth and find it a bit laid back. Particularly if he visited on the day after Thanksgiving. Or a Sunday.

So, basically, unless we can somehow confirm this long ago sleeping panther story there is nothing with real meaning in the Panther Island Pavilion name.

But, with Panther Island Brewing at least part of the name is based on something real. At least I hope this brewery is really brewing beer.

I have already opined that the Panther Island nonsense needs to stop, so I won't repeat myself, yet again....

Mr. & Mrs. Galtex Are In Argentina Where They Learned Fort Worth Has America's Top Downtown

Mr. and Mrs. Galtex are two of the few people who live in downtown Fort Worth. The Galtex's are currently escaping the Texas HEAT in a little town in Argentina called Buenos Aires.

This afternoon Mr. Galtex emailed me an email, subject line "The #1 Downtown in America" with one of the lines of the text in the email saying, "No matter how far away we travel, we can't escape the powerful attractions of Sundance Square. Mrs. Galtex received the attached newsletter, and we thought we'd pass it along."

I have no idea who are what demented entity is claiming Fort Worth has America's top downtown.

Now, don't go thinking that I don't think that downtown Fort Worth is a perfectly fine downtown with many perfectly fine attributes.

But.

It is absurd to tout this type of ridiculous propaganda. It ill serves the locals who may have never seen the downtown of another of America's big cities.

Believing this type propaganda misleads locals into thinking that, well, I guess having a boarded up eyesore celebrating our town's Heritage at the north end of our downtown is not such a bad thing, why we've still got the best downtown in America.

Believing this type propaganda misleads locals into thinking it must not be a bad thing that downtown Fort Worth does not have a single grocery store or a department store, why we've still got the best downtown in America.

Believing this type propaganda misleads locals into thinking it must not be a bad thing that downtown Fort Worth does not have a public transit system directly connecting its downtown to its airport, why we've still got the best downtown in America.

I could go on and on. And usually do.

Nothing points out the absurdity of anyone claiming downtown Fort Worth has the best downtown in America than one undeniable fact, that being on the busiest shopping day of the year, the day after Thanksgiving, downtown Fort Worth is a ghost town, due to the lack of stores, a fact I have documented several times and as recently as the most recent day after Thanksgiving in a blogging titled Having Fun Looking For Black Friday Shoppers Today In Downtown Fort Worth.

I don't understand why there are people in Fort Worth who propagate this type of propaganda. Why not actually do some things that might actually make Fort Worth one of the best downtowns in America? Start with getting rid of the eyesores.

Including Panther Island Pavilion.

Actually follow through on getting rid of that giant flying saucer that is attached to Fort Worth's Convention Center.

Send a study group to look at some of America's actual best downtowns and discover things that  might work in downtown Fort Worth.

There was way too much local back patting over finally adding a square to downtown Fort Worth after years of confusing tourists with signs pointing to a non-existent Sundance Square. I think the fact that it took so long to actually add a square to Sundance Square is symptomatic of the problem that keeps Fort Worth from actually having one of the best downtowns in America.

A dynamic downtown in America would not have a slow motion boondoggle festering on the north end of its downtown, festering with no project completion timeline, a public works project never voted on by the public. A boondoggle which putters slowly along.

And no one. Well hardly anyone, says this boondoggle is ridiculous. A vibrant city, with one of America's best downtowns, would not suffer gladly a project undertaken in slow motion, now with three bridges over nothing under construction, causing traffic woes for four years as the little non-signature bridges are built.

And please, I beg you, please, no one make a comment telling me that ESPN chose downtown Fort Worth as their opening day of college football location, because Fort Worth has the best downtown in America.

I suspect the conversation inside ESPN likely went something like, where do you want to hold this thing?

We need a location where the locals will come out and act all excited. Nowhere with any level of sophistication. We need some place where not a lot happens.

Hey, remember that Dallas Super Bowl debacle where we set up in a parking lot we thought was Sundance Square in downtown Fort Worth? You would not believe the number of locals who showed up when it quit freezing.

So, you think downtown Fort Worth is a good location, rather than one of America's better downtowns?

Yes. We'll have a huge crowd of drunken rowdies. Plus, that parking lot we used before that we thought was Sundance Square. Well, now they have actually built a square. It's not a very big thing, but it might be big enough for our purposes.

Little did ESPN know that they were returning to the Best Downtown in America.....

The Prophet J.D. Granger Failed To Predict An Extremely Low Turnout For PIP's Clearfork Music Festival

Last Thursday I blogged a blogging titled Today I Learned JD Granger Is A Panther Island Prophet With A Shack Fort Worth's Latest Music Venue after being appalled at a piece of propaganda puffery in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram publication called DFW.com which touted J.D. Granger as a prophet foreseeing turning the banks of the Trinity River into an extremely successful site for music festivals.

A couple hubris laden J.D. Granger quotes from that DFW.com article...

“When looking at the demographics we were excited to see that people from all over North Texas are coming to events held at Panther Island Pavilion,” Granger says. “Week in and week out, our summer series had the highest attendance we’ve seen in the history of the venue. It’s a great feeling to know this record-breaking summer was a result of people traveling from all over the Metroplex.”

“The success of Panther Island Pavilion has exceeded our expectatins,” Granger says. “We have a packed schedule, including seven events over the next month, but most importantly, it’s bringing a new and diverse audience to Panther Island.”

I remember reading the two above blurbs and thinking, right, people are coming from all over North Texas to record-breaking events on the Trinity River.

The DFW.com puff piece mentioned this past weekend's Clearfork Music Festival at Panther Island Pavilion as being one of the upcoming events which would draw in the throngs from all over the Dallas Metroplex and the rest of North Texas.

Well, an observer from Dallas observed Saturday's Clearfork Music Festival and then wrote an article in the online Dallas Observer titled Clearfork Music Festival was Plagued By Poor Attendance Saturday in Fort Worth.

The first and last two paragraphs from the Dallas Observer article...

Inside of the half-empty Clearfork Music Festival in Fort Worth this past Saturday, it was impossible to not wonder what exactly constitutes a true festival. Any view of the festival grounds at Panther Island Pavilion from one of the slightly elevated spots of the land provided a view of a vibrant festival skeleton complete with tents for local artisans and activists, food trucks, beer trailers and three performance stages. Indeed, Saturday at Clearfork looked very much like a proper festival, even if it failed to feel like one for the most part.

In what should've been the crowning hour for the Clearfork Music Festival was rather underwhelming. Taking only a few steps backwards to break free of the loosely gathered crowd to walk up the incline of a small hill for an overall view of the setting, it was clear that a true crowd hadn't formed even for the headlining set.

So, sure, Clearfork was a festival -- and a well-run, fan-friendly one at that. But regardless of the high quality of performances that saved the day and a staff that was eager to please, there's nothing fun in feeling sorry for the artist beginning a set that few attendees seem to care enough about to arrive before the first two songs are complete. When it comes to music festivals here in North Texas, just because one is built, doesn't mean anyone will come.

Now, the above is what a fair and balanced bit of reporting reads like.

I wonder what the propaganda spin on the Clearfork Music Festival might be in the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's propaganda mouthpiece?

I suspect something like "The Clearfork crowds broke all previous records, proving once again what a successful music venue the Panther Island Pavilion has become, attracting music lovers from all over the world, while making other music festivals in other towns, far and wide, green with envy....."