What about Sudz in the City??? It is happening in NINE DAYS!!! It doesn't seem like the Downtown Association is promoting that event at all!!! Everybody is all talk, and no action. Things don't get done because there are a bunch of dumb asses running things.

This totally snuck up on me. And I read your column last week.

I hadn't heard anything about Sudz in the City, either. And I'm supposed to be in the know.

It's a shame because Fulton Plaza Thursdays was super cool the first year and it seemed like it had a lot of buzz going into year two.

Very sneaky this activity in the downtown. I heard about it 45 minutes after it started,

I feel the pain on Sudz in the City, but that thing seems to be on a freefall, too.

For the record:

Sudz in the city is May 12 at Chukchansi Stadium.
That's about all I got in the details department though.

I checked it out for a bit last night, I have to say I was really disappointed. It seems the beer "corral" is back. Last year you could walk around with a beer in your hand, this year they push you off to the side. It really had a feel of being thrown together at the last minute. I hope it gets better or this may be the last year for F.P.T.

But then again, maybe it was the weather. Even ArtHop seemed a little dead last night.

Well I too went the the Fulton last night... Nobody was there! It was probally to cold for more people to come out. I was freezing. However, the band sounded great! They hired the right sound company. The D.T.A. needs to add a marketing person to thier team.

No doubt about Sudz. KMJ's website actually has more information than the Downtown Assoc! The promotion of this event has been so lackling, a co-worker (who has also attended several Sudz)asked if it was even happening this year. It seems that they're letting one of the most well-attended downtown events fall by the wayside. Way to go!

I'd like to add to the "When the hell is Sudz anyway?" questions around town. Everybody I run into (that are drunks like me) is walking around wondering "what the hell?"

If Mike doesn't know then who???? There's usually a few bands playing, do any bands out there know who's playing Sunz?

Here's the list of bands I have currently:

Nate Pearce Band
Heavy Weather
Michael Robinson Band
Neptunes
Black Sheep
Diesel Finger
Straight Up Sinners

The Fresno Downtown Association is a joke. In my honest opinion, it's an excuse for lazy people to feel important. If they really cared about downtown Fresno, they'd actually promote their events, work with the music community, get younger residents of Fresno involved (you know...the ones that actually go out), and build up from that base.

Several friends of mine are retailers in the downtown area. They've all said the same thing about the Downtown Association. "It's a bunch of stuffy people with the idea that downtown isn't broken, and if it ain't broke, why fix it?" If that's sincerely their mentality, the Downtown Association can't be looked at with any respect. We need a secondary association to form, one that'll actually keep the interests of the people in mind. This whole thing with only one show a month on a Thursday? Idiotic, really. Meh, I'll stop. Starting to get upset, lol.

Last thing. Suds in the City. What a farce. I drink. A lot. As do many of my friends. And we love Suds. We found out about Suds yesterday. Less than a week before the show. Stellar promotions, kids!!

We sincerely need to take all of this into our own hands and make downtown rock! By the people, for the people? I think, yes.