What do you think about the avenues this year ?

lomaxfrog · Post by **lomaxfrog** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 3:06 pm

The title says it all. What do you think of the 4:30 and
7:30 avenues ? Did you notice the new keyholes ? The
4:30 and 7:30 plaza ?

Frog ([email protected])
BRC Placement

Lorgasm · Post by **Lorgasm** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 3:13 pm

I was at Hope (an area that I liked to call the "kiddie table").

It was all good. Bravo!

Ron · Post by **Ron** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 4:02 pm

I did notice and liked the changes. Not only those you mention but also moving the theme camps back into the city. It made the back streets feel more populated and alive.

Our camp has been on the Esplanade the past three or four years and was out on 3:30 and Eager this year and we all enjoyed the change. The only negative difference we noticed was an increased need to deal with folk trying to grab parts of our camp. When one is on the Esplanade everyone understands they can't just plop their stuff where they want, in the back streets that wasn't so. I had squatters trying to grab spots to leave their cars as late as Saturday night *after* the Man had burned...

Ron

Kinetic IV · Post by **Kinetic IV** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 4:11 pm

I liked the changes. Anything that draws people back into the city and encourages the smaller camps to bring more art due to higher visibility is good.

StevenGoodman · Post by **StevenGoodman** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 4:16 pm

This year they seemed to be a better implementation of a bad concept. I was at BM for 10 days, and I never even made it to the 9:00 plaza or the 7:30 avenue. There was just no draw. (Hum, I think I did ride my bike once through the 9:00 plaza, now that I think about it, on my way somewhere.)

I barely made it to the 3:00 plaza. And I only saw the 4:30 avenue because I made a intentional effort to ride around on it one afternoon; and I didn't find anything to draw me back in the evening.

I rode past the corner of 4:30 and "A" multiple times per day, but there was nothing drawing me farther up 4:30.

But a lot of my opinion may be based on living at "A" and 4:45, there is little reason to travel "back" into the city unless you have a destination. And there just isn't enough time to spend wandering all the back streets.

onyurmark · Post by **onyurmark** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 4:52 pm

I thought the avenues were great this last year. I missed some of the grande avenue feel of much of the Esplenade but I thought spreading out the theme camps gave everyone a bit more room and created more interesting side streets and corners. The Plaza points gave a very intereresting open feel to some cool neighborhoods.

The night of the burn our group headed out to 8:15 past Eager. We were on foot and it was a long haul from our camp (3:00 and Eager) but it seemed like a completely different neighborbood. I didn't realize how populated the streets were even from a tall scaffold until I saw on on foot.

fancy1 · Post by **fancy1** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 6:30 pm

I did like the layout this year, except... the detour on Destiny. It made it a little difficult. Some folks remarked "oh, it's a dead end, lets go the other way".

Other than the detour, I felt it worked well.

Good job, Frog!

Fancy

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 7:17 pm

I think the plazas and the avenues are a good way to get the regionals more involved in the event itself. The regionals could provide art for the plazas and be placed around them. Burning Silicon, my local regional, had a camp of somewhere around 200 people. Other regionals had large camps too. I think giving the regionals space around plazas and encouraging them to provide art for the plaza allows them to create a special space. There could be a plaza for Western US regionals, one for Eastern US regionals, one for Atlantic regionals and one for Pacific regionals.

The idea would be to turn the plazas into regional showcases.

Sensei · Post by **Sensei** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 8:45 pm

lomaxfrog wrote:The title says it all. What do you think of the 4:30 and
7:30 avenues ? Did you notice the new keyholes ? The
4:30 and 7:30 plaza ?

Frog ([email protected])
BRC Placement

I'M SO GLAD YOU ASKED!

Why yes, yes I did like the new keyholes very much. Thank you!
See, here's the thang: I always live out by walk-in, almost always between 4:30 and 5:00. In past years, returning home at night was always a cold, dark trip through the Black Rock's ghetto.

{Sing "In the Ghetto" here}

This year was quite different. There was MUSIC, AN ACTUAL FIRE, and BLINKY LIGHTS THAT STAYED ON ALL NIGHT! Can you imagine such a thing? See, I like to stay out late, but coming home was always such a pain in the tucas. Everyone knows how dark it can be on the outer roads, especially down there between 4 and 8. For those of us poor slobs who live out there, we know we're a long way from anything, but sometimes it got a bit depressing. This year however, I had a nice, warm, friendly spot to stop at on the way home, which I did at almost every opportunity. I'd also tell anyone who'd listen that this was a great fucking idea. Kudos especially to the friendly folks at the 4:30 keyhole. They'd welcome anyone who came anywhere near the fire with a hearty hello. Seriously, way to go, people!

I still can't believe they were playing music there! Late into the night even!

I never thought I'd see it. Thanks for the HUGE improvement, Frog!

Dork · Post by **Dork** » Sat Sep 09, 2006 9:41 pm

I really like the concept of spreading things out. My first couple of years the Esplanade and route from center camp to the man was like the tourist zone and everything else was the suburbs. This year's layout was better. It could do for some more eye candy and interaction along the avenues, but that's our fault for not bringing enough cool stuff.

The keyholes themselves could have been a little better implemented, though. The 4:30 keyhole was just a bunch of traffic cones and eventually a really beat up couch someone put out there. Perhaps there could be a call for people to create something to fill the spot? Some bit of artwork, a shaded chill area, a notice board, anything.

lomaxfrog · Post by **lomaxfrog** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 10:14 am

I like this idea. Ask for it in your theme camp questionnaire
next year.

Frog

[quote="geekster"]I think the plazas and the avenues are a good way to get the regionals more involved in the event itself. The regionals could provide art for the plazas and be placed around them. Burning Silicon, my local regional, had a camp of somewhere around 200 people. Other regionals had large camps too. I think giving the regionals space around plazas and encouraging them to provide art for the plaza allows them to create a special space. There could be a plaza for Western US regionals, one for Eastern US regionals, one for Atlantic regionals and one for Pacific regionals.

The idea would be to turn the plazas into regional showcases.[/quote]

diane o'thirst · Post by **diane o'thirst** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 12:23 pm

It was a little confusing at first blush but it's all good. Room for growth

Did anyone catch "Second Chance" between Grand Circle and Center Camp?

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 12:29 pm

"There was MUSIC, AN ACTUAL FIRE, and BLINKY LIGHTS THAT STAYED ON ALL NIGHT! "

That brings up another thing.

We noticed that we had the only burn barrels near the street in either direction along our street as far as the eye could see. Some camps had a burn barrel buried deep inside their camp area but that isn't exactly inviting for people walking along the roads. One of the concepts we use for our camp could easily be placed in the plazas. We have two or three burn barrels and each one has 2 or 3 playatech benches nearby. While this year was an exception due to the milder than usual nights, we have found that these barrels and benches are a welcome sight to people trekking back to their camps from a night of dancing or other wanderings around town.

At first they are attracted to warm up a little around the fire and soon people get to talking and the benches fill. Then we break out the bacon. We see it as providing an opportunity to get some spontanious community building going on. It also gives the dirt rangers a little warmth in their rounds. The ones we really do it for are the folks who have been out and about during the day, are all the way across town and are trying to make it back to their camp but aren't dressed for the cold.

If the plazas also had fire and benches and provided a known spot for people to warm up and take a load off for a minute, they would become desitinations on people's routes home at night as people seek out a spot to take the chill off. The walk home doesn't seem quite as long and they have an opportunuty to make new connections with others sharing the fire. It does, of course require some logistics as a fire must be "owned" by someone who will keep it fed and see that it doesn't burn unattended.

I am not sure all the plazas had fire going. We drove through a few of the plazas on the art car and I don't remember seeing any because we probably would have stopped for a while if there had been.

PurpleKoosh · Post by **PurpleKoosh** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 12:33 pm

diane o'thirst wrote:Did anyone catch "Second Chance" between Grand Circle and Center Camp?

That was one of Burning Silicon's internal radial roads; they also had Last Chance. (They had internal spokes at 6:35 and 6:40 as well.)

geekster · Post by **geekster** » Sun Sep 10, 2006 12:38 pm

While I don't camp with them (because I think Iron Rose is a kickass camp), I do associate a bit with our Silicon Valley regional, Burning Silicon, and damned if I am not impressed with the stuff they manage to do out there. I really love those folks and if anyone reading this living in the South SF Bay area hasn't managed to connect, you really should go to one of their Town Council meetings and get to know them. Go over on tribe and connect with Real Girl to find out more and get details on the next meeting.

What do you think about the avenues this year ?

What do you think about the avenues this year ?

Re: What do you think about the avenues this year ?