Trip Santa Monica

I went back to Trip Santa Monica after a couple of years away and had a really cool night. There was a rock band that brought people in and I kept them for a while. Great ambiance!. Had a great time and even came out with a pint and a couple of cool videos.

Another Venue Hits The Dust -San Clemente First Sunday Art Walk

Hi,

Until Sunday morning, I was the banjo player/ singer at the First Sunday Art Walk. I’ve been coming every month for the last couple of years. I was classified as a non-profit vendor and was brought in by your previous market director. I thought it was fun. I enjoyed talking to the customers and playing for the kids when the parents would stop to listen. The tips were all right. On the average, about 50 of your customers thought enough of my performance to provide tips per each Sunday. A lot of the time it was more.

Since the beginning of the year my scheduled performance sites have become problematic. I was supposed to move to a different location after the first two hours. At the first location, another non-profit vendor near me was very aggressive in soliciting funds and made it impossible to get tips. I addressed this with Allison and I moved up across Ola Visa to perform near the intersection. The second site where I was supposed to perform never really existed, so I had to make do with what space I could find.

There began to be a problem with one vendor wanting me not to be near them, so I complied. A couple of times I had to return back down to the corner at Ola Visa and Del Mar because I couldn’t find another location. I asked Allison to just give me the spot on that corner permanently, which she would not do. She rented it to a commercial vendor instead. With the reopening of the shop on that corner, I was forced to move up the sidewalk so as to not block the doorway to the new shop. Immediately, the vendor that took my spot complained to Allison and I was asked to move. Allison wasn’t sure where I was supposed to move to. I was told I was not a paying Vendor so I was expected to make do.

Over the last year, my endeavors in performing have been gaining some success. I’ve performed at The San Diego County Fair and The Iris Festival in Porterville and The Malibu Art Festival to name a few. My YouTube Channel has topped 12,000 views and I have a new CD in the works. I am professionally hired and make standard performance fees a lot of the time now.

To drive an hour and a half to your venue for no money other than tips and to have no reasonable place to set up my chair, has turned this into a very negative thing. At one point, Allison was even questioning my playlist, even though she has never been around to notice what I play for four hours. I have watched as she has spoken badly of a couple of the paying vendors which I considered my friends to other Vendors.  I wouldn’t be surprised if she speaks badly of me as well. She appears to be incapable of planning my performance space ahead of time or correcting my contact information in her mailing list.

Given the circumstances, I’m requesting a refund of the $50.00 I was asked to pay last year for membership in your organization. I’ve received little benefit. I don’t really expect your organization to refund me, but I will include my address here.  I probably would have continued to come, but it has really become a very unpleasant thing.

Dan McNay

7750 Isis Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90045

310-337-7229