Will Non-Art Vendors Be Gone from the Annual Birmingham Street Art Fair?

Other than the fact that the Annual Birmingham Street Art Fair is moving locations next year to avoid interference with the reconstruction of Shain Park, there might also be another significant change. There has been concern shown by some of the members of the Birmingham City Commission about the growing number of non-art vendors at the show.

They types of vendors that the commissioners, including Commissioner McDaniel, are wondering about include those that are selling home improvement services, refinancing services, auto repair services, and any other type of traditional business that is not linked to the art world. There may be a push to eliminate non-art related vendors from the Annual Birmingham Street Art Fair.

I contacted the office of the City Commission and was told that the issue is over the fact that the number of these vendors is growing, and could take away from the reputation of the Annual Birmingham Street Art Fair. While the City Commission knows that these vendors pay the fees for their tables, they want to see if some kind of restrictions could be put on this vendors. I was also told that this is going to become a strong issue in front of the City Commission over the next few months.

Source:

Minutes for Birmingham City Commission for September 27^th, 2010