Events like Alive on 25 are important for downtown revitalization

I am a fourth-generation Riverhead resident. I grew up here, I raised my family here, and I have spent many years of my career working to make this community stronger. I’ve served as Executive Director of both the Riverhead BIDMA and the Chamber of Commerce. I’ve produced festivals, built marketing campaigns, and shown up for this town in every way I know how. After watching today’s work session and learning that the BIDMA and the Chamber relayed their desire to not have Alive on 25 this year, I’m writing because I believe we are at risk of losing sight of something that matters deeply to me and to this community. 

I’m not just talking about Alive On 25. I’m talking about what events like this do for a town. They activate our downtown. They inspire our kids. They give people hope and pride and love for the place they call home. I fully understand the logistic challenges of a downtown under construction and the cost of policing, but I think not coming up with an idea for continuing Alive On 25 or the Downtown Block Party in some capacity is a mistake we’ll regret. I have ideas, good ones. Invite me to your table to talk. Oh, and I have the track record to execute.

Let me set the record straight on something that has been misrepresented over the years: Alive On 25 was never created as a fundraiser. It was never intended to be a revenue generator for the BIDMA. It was created as a creative placemaking event, designed to bring people back to our downtown, to give them a reason to want to be here, and to show them what Riverhead has to offer. Give people a place they are proud to call home.

I was there from the very beginning. In 2016, when I read in RiverheadLOCAL that a group was planning a street festival modeled after Patchogue’s Alive After Five, I knew I had to be part of it. Alive After Five in Patchogue was part of a revitalization effort that generated $693 million in economic output and nearly 6,000 jobs. A village that was once considered a ghost town now has 35 to 40 thriving restaurants. That didn’t happen because of one event, but the event was a critical piece of the puzzle. We set out to do the same thing here. NOT to be Patchogue, but to take a model from what was clearly a success. To be RIVERHEAD. And now every thriving downtown on Long Island is doing some version of this.

Communities are investing in events, not cutting them.

And there is proof it worked. Cucina 25 opened directly because of Alive On 25. The owners came to the event, saw the potential, and opened their restaurant the following year. That’s the whole point. You bring people downtown, let them experience it, and they come back as customers, as business owners, as community members. Last year the wrestling show we brought in? Wow. The faces and happiness are enough for me. I saw them all! (Yes, because I got in the ring!)

As executive director for the Chamber, I recall reading scholarship application letters from high school seniors that specifically mentioned the positive impact of these events on them. Even I didn’t realize that. That brought a proud tear to my eye! Many people just do not understand the impact beyond surface level of what they see.

In 2025, the Town of Riverhead contracted my company, Main Street Agency, to produce Alive On 25. And we did it with a bang. We rebranded it as the Riverhead Downtown Block Party, and it was probably one of the most successful events this downtown has ever seen. The feeling those nights was different. There was a sense of camaraderie, of friendliness, of people genuinely enjoying themselves. Everyone I talked to, everything you read, it was all about that energy. That matters.

I intentionally made it a Riverhead-centric event. Most of the food vendors were Riverhead-based businesses. Craft vendors were predominantly local artisans and farmers market regulars. The musicians had connections to this community. Ninety percent of the people involved had a direct connection to Riverhead. This was our community, celebrating itself.

Events like this bring thousands of people downtown. This isn’t just about one event this year. When you start canceling the things that bring a community together, you send a message that we’re going backwards. Our kids see that. Our neighbors see that. The people thinking about opening a business here see that.

Here’s a factual reminder:  the people of Riverhead have spoken on this, repeatedly, consistently, and on the record. The 2016 BOA Study, which the Town paid for, surveyed over 800 residents, conducted focus groups, and held public workshops. The number one thing people asked for? More events. More live music. More festivals. Respondents literally referenced Patchogue’s Alive After Five by name. The BOA study recommended that “something should be going on every weekend if possible.” I worked on the Creative Placemaking piece of that study as part of my work with WaterFire.

The Town’s 2019 DRI application cited Alive On 25 as a model for creative placemaking. That application helped win $10 million in state funding, including $3.24 million for a Town Square designed for “year-round activation.” In 2025, the state awarded another $1.4 million for a downtown amphitheater for community events. At the 2024 “Future of Riverhead” forum, Supervisor Hubbard said the Town Square “will be programmed with events.”

Every study. Every survey. Every stakeholder meeting. For ten years, the answer has been the same: more events, not fewer.

Whether or not we can save this particular event this year, or create a fun compromise while Downtown is under construction, the bigger message is this: we cannot stop investing in the things that bring our community together. Our kids need to see a vibrant, thriving place they’re proud to grow up in. Our residents need reasons to come downtown, not reasons to stay away.

Thank you to Councilman Rothwell and Councilwoman Waski for supporting me and this event today at the work session (March 26, 2026) and for recognizing what our people deserve. I truly know you appreciate what this all really means, and I thank you for the respect you show me. The enjoyment of all who come is what keeps me going, and fighting.

Diane Tucci lives in Riverhead. Her company, Main Street Agency, produced Alive on 25 last year for the town after the Riverhead Business Improvement District Management Association decided not to continue producing the event.