Alive on 25 will ‘absolutely’ be back this summer, Rothwell says

A week after the supervisor raised questions about whether Alive on 25 is a worthwhile investment, the popular summer street festival seems poised for approval, with a majority of Town Board members in support of continuing it.

“Absolutely yes, there will be an Alive on 25,” Council Member Ken Rothwell said in an interview Saturday, adding that he expects the board to move quickly because whoever is hired to organize the event will need time to secure a date, vendors and logistics.

The event’s fate was not resolved during the Town Board’s April 2 work session, where four board members spoke favorably about the downtown festival but the supervisor ended the discussion without a final decision, a timetable or any directive to staff.

Rothwell said he expects the matter to be formalized soon, likely at the board’s April 21 meeting.

“I don’t think anything’s going to be pulled off the floor” at the board’s April 7 meeting, Rothwell said. “But definitely the following one, there’s got to be a decision making going forward on it.”

The question of whether the event would return surfaced at the board’s March 26 work session, when Supervisor Jerry Halpin raised concerns about costs, police staffing and whether downtown businesses still support the event. He said he’d spoken to members of the Riverhead Chamber of Commerce, Riverhead BID Management Association and some individual downtown business owners who questioned the value of the event for downtown businesses. The general sentiment was that Alive on 25 may not be the best use of time and resources in a year already crowded with events and complicated by downtown construction, Halpin said.

The March 26 work session discussion drew pushback from business owners and residents who viewed the festival as a key draw for Main Street.

At the April 2 follow-up discussion, Council Members Joann Waski, Rothwell and Denise Merrifield, along with Councilman Bob Kern, all voiced support for the event and heard from speakers who described it as a benefit to downtown businesses and to Riverhead’s broader redevelopment effort.

Halpin, while sounding less skeptical than he had a week earlier, still did not commit to a path forward and ended the discussion before the board reached any conclusion.

Rothwell was blunt Saturday in criticizing the supervisor’s handling of the issue.

“I think he is disseminating misinformation,” Rothwell said. “I think he’s inaccurate in terms of — I asked them in the first work session and the second work session, what businesses have you gone to and talked to that said, this does not help us.”

Rothwell said his own conversations with downtown merchants have pointed in the opposite direction.

“Alive on 25 is seen as an injection for downtown,” he said, describing the event as a way to bring pedestrians onto Main Street, expose visitors to shops and restaurants they might otherwise pass by, and create follow-up business after the festival itself.

“It’s not just about how many sales were on your register that night,” he said. “Did you get a sale the following week? Does somebody come next weekend? Does somebody come on the following Tuesday and say, we were here a couple weeks ago?”

Rothwell acknowledged that some business owners over the years have questioned whether the event fits their model, but said he views the festival as an opportunity businesses can choose to use, not a burden that harms them.

The town, he said, has an obligation to support downtown businesses, especially while major construction continues in the center of town.

“You have to have programs like that, especially when you’re under construction and you’re blocking off areas,” he said.

Rothwell also said he would support bringing back Diane Tucci, who organized last year’s event after the Riverhead Business Improvement District Management Association stepped away from it.

He said Tucci “did a phenomenal job last year” and “knocked it out of the park,” though he noted some board members have raised the possibility of seeking proposals from other organizers as well.

Last year’s event drew broad praise and introduced several changes, including a stronger emphasis on Riverhead-based vendors, performers and food businesses. Rothwell said he was struck by how positive the public response was, including on social media.

He also said he has spoken with former BIDMA president Steve Shauger, who told him Alive on 25 has historically been the most positively received downtown event, even though some business owners have always had concerns about access or format.

“It was never designed as a money generator,” Rothwell said. “It was designed to create a vibrance in downtown and injection of people to see what happens down there.”

One change that now appears likely is the day of the week.

Rothwell said he expects the event will probably be held on a Thursday rather than a Friday, reflecting comments from some downtown businesses that Thursday is a slower day and therefore a better target for an event meant to increase foot traffic.

“I think it’s going to be a Thursday,” he said.

As for timing, Rothwell said late July or August may be more realistic than early July, especially given the competition for fireworks and other attractions tied to the nation’s 250th anniversary celebrations this summer. He said the town will need to consider what other regional events are already scheduled before settling on a date.

Costs remain part of the conversation.

Rothwell said the latest estimate he has heard for police costs alone was about $17,000, with additional expenses associated with highway crews, building and grounds staff, barricades, setup and cleanup.

But he dismissed the idea that those costs justify dropping the event.

“I don’t want to lose the community events,” he said. “I think they’re great for the businesses. I think we’re obligated to help the downtown businesses,” and the cost of the event is “very miniscule” compared to other things. 

For now, Alive on 25 remains without a formal vote, an approved organizer or a confirmed date.