By John Estridge
Union County’s Bicentennial celebration is in jeopardy.
That was the message from Bicentennial Chairperson Melissa Spillers and Union County Commissioner Paul Wiwi Thursday morning, March 18, at the Union County Council meeting.
Spillers said the Bicentennial has received no money to date even though $30,000 was committed by the Union County Tourism Commission in the fall of 2020. Wiwi said the tourism commission and the Union County Development Corporation have failed to get together and sign the necessary contract. UCDC will be the conduit for the money between the tourism commission and the UC Bicentennial Committee.
Spillers said there is currently $112,000 in the tourism account in the county coffers. Tourism derives money from a motel/hotel/innkeepers tax that has been levied in Union County for the past three years. Local tax money is not involved.
According to Union County Auditor Cheryl Begley, even though the money is in the county’s account and the tourism commission has agreed to expend $30,000 for the Bicentennial celebration, she cannot move that money until she sees the signed contract.
The Bicentennial celebration is scheduled to formally start with opening ceremonies on June 27. Closing ceremonies will take place on July 11.
According to Spillers, when the UC Sesquicentennial was planned, the county spent $40,000 for a company to come in and plan the Sesquicentennial events. Additionally, one person was hired and the utilities and rent paid for 18 months for an office and place to sell Sesquicentennial memorabilia. According to the inflation calculator on the Internet, just the $40,000 in 1971 is equivalent to $259,766.91 50 years later in 2021. Thus, the $30,000 is less than 10 percent of the money the county leaders spent in 1971.
Spillers said if the Bicentennial gets to go on as planned, there will be events every day between June 27 and July 11, with most occurring in downtown Liberty. However, the Fourth of July celebration including parade and fireworks will be in College Corner on Saturday, July 3.
Also, the major music acts, planned for Friday, July 2, will be held at Union County High School. Everything is free to the public, if events are allowed to go on.
On July 2, a local bluegrass band will take the stage at 4 p.m., followed by Larry Sparks, called the father of bluegrass, at 6 p.m. He is from Wayne County and has a song called “Down in Union County,” which he will open his set with, Spillers said. After that is the main act, starting at 8 p.m. It was the bluegrass Band of the Year in 2019, Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers.
Councilman Jeff Adams told the other council members Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers is a phenomenal band. The only thing that will cost money is there will be a Meet and Greet with Joe Mullins and the Radio Ramblers for $100 a person and the committee expects to sell 200 for a total of $20,000. Again, Adams said people who love bluegrass would pay that amount to get to meet the band.
Councilman Jim Hensley is on the Bicentennial’s Entertainment Committee and also believes the Meet and Greet will be very popular.
There will be buses supplied by Union County Transportation to and from the school so there is not a parking problem.
Every day there will be magicians, comedians and other entertainers near the courthouse in Liberty.
On July 9 at the courthouse, Duke Tomatoe will play. Tomatoe was an early member of REO Speedwagon and has played with Muddy Waters, Bo Diddley, B.B. King, Willie Dixon, Buddy Guy, John Fogerty and George Thorogood.
The cost for the bluegrass night on July 2, staging and Duke Tomatoe is $23,000, Spillers said. At the 2008 Brookville Bicentennial the committee there spent $35,000 on bringing in the band Night Ranger and related costs. The committee blocked off Main Street, which is U.S. 52, and had what many believe was the most people ever gathered together in Brookville for any event in its 200-year history.
Spillers said the bluegrass acts will bring in fans from all over the Midwest.
“Those are what are going to bring people into our community to see what we have, to see who we are, to see how pretty it is,” Spillers said. “They will say ‘this small town was able to put on an event like this.’ It will bring people in from all over.
“This is not only just going to be fun but it will be good for the whole community,” she continued. “It will be good for our small businesses.”
Spillers said she understands $30,000 seems like a lot of money, but this is a 14-day event and that is not a lot of money when looking at it that way.
She said the hesitation concerning the $30,000 has almost stopped the Bicentennial planning in its tracks.
“Without any funding, we cannot continue to move forward with anything,” Spillers said.
While the committee is seeking grants and sponsors for the event, without the money pledged to the Bicentennial, there may not be a Bicentennial.
According to Spillers, all of the events may not take place due to the lack of contract between the tourism commission and UCDC. Spillers said there is not enough money to print the tickets for the Meet and Greet. The Bicentennial Committee plans on making additional money through sponsorships, grants and the sale of memorabilia.
Begley said she could get the Bicentennial Committee the check in April if she can see the signed contract. Thursday morning, council voted unanimously to pass the $30,000 additional appropriation at its April meeting if the UCDC and tourism commission can get a signed contract to the auditor.
No members from UCDC and its board or the tourism commission attended the county council meeting.
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It is a shame that the Union County Tourism Commission & Union County Development Corp are being blamed for inaction by the Union County Commissioners. The Inn Keepers tax was established in 2017. The Union County Commissioners did not setup the Union County Tourism Commission until late 2020, after they had appointed the Bicentennial Committee. This all would have been avoided if the Commissioners had done there job and setup the Union County Tourism Commission in 2017. Now the Commissioners want to make the UCDC legally responsible for the Bicentennial Committee that the Commissioners appointed.