Downtown BID and the City of Glen Cove Join Forces in Drive to Make Glen Cove the Music Capital of the North Shore
GLEN COVE, NY, June 1, 2016 – Beginning in July, thousands of music fans will converge on Glen Cove Village Square Plaza to experience nine weekends of fantastic performances by some of the New York area’s hottest performers. This highly popular concert series, Downtown Sounds 2016, is made possible through a partnership between the Glen Cove Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) – the program’s organizer – and the City of Glen Cove. Under the leadership of the Downtown Sounds Advisory Board, chaired by Glen Cove’s mayor, Reginald Spinello, and the Downtown Sounds Working Committee, chaired by Fred Guarino of Tiki Recording Studios, Inc, this highly popular and free outdoor summer concert series has become a destination event for music aficionados. Every Friday night during July and August, downtown Glen Cove comes alive with music featuring New York area artists. With the sounds of jazz, rhythm and blues, rock, folk, salsa and other genres filling the air, concert goers will enjoy great music while dancing in the streets and dining in Glen Cove’s open and inviting downtown. “Bringing together the talents, resources and experience of the City and the BID have created the next evolutionary step in our drive to make Glen Cove the Music Capital of Long Island,” said Mayor Spinello. “I appreciate the efforts of Deputy Mayor Barbara Peebles and Francine Koehler of the Downtown BID as they collaborate each year with local businesses, committee members and our City departments to make this event a success.” This year’s Downtown Sounds schedule will feature: July 1st: The Patriot Brass Ensemble – A tribute to our veterans July 8th: The Sidemen featuring The Uptown Horns July 15th: Desert Highway July 22nd: The Stanton Anderson Band July 29th: Rock The Cove – A night showcasing local stars August 5th: Marvin Floyd & Friends August 12th: Richie Cannata and The Lords of 52nd Street August 19th: Williamsburg Salsa Orchestra August 26th: Soul Sound Revue Additionally, Downtown Sounds 2016 is partnering with OWWR, Old Westbury WEB Radio and OWTV Old Westbury Television at SUNY College at Old Westbury. Each concert will be WebCast live from the Plaza. Professor Joseph Manfredi, OWWR Station Manager and the “Velvet Voice of Downtown Sounds” will emcee the events. Over the past 19 years, the concerts and festivities have become a highly anticipated part of summertime in downtown Glen Cove, according to Francine Koehler, executive director of the Downtown BID. “As co-producers of Downtown Sounds with the City of Glen Cove, the Downtown BID is able to open new opportunities to the entire Glen Cove business community to showcase themselves.” The strategic focus of the Glen Cove Downtown Business Improvement District (BID) centers on attracting new businesses while retaining the existing base. The BID encourages economic development through the strengthening of downtown Glen Cove’s marketing activities by: • Developing strategic partnerships within the public and private sectors, • Improving and maintaining security, • Beautifying the downtown streetscape, and • Sponsoring and staging special events that build foot traffic in the downtown area. Toward that end, the BID in 1997 created its first free concert series, Jazz in the Square. The event proved to be quite successful. During the following years, the concert series evolved to accommodate a variety of musical styles that broadened its appeal to residents and visitors alike. Today, the event – now known as Downtown Sounds – is jointly produced by the Glen Cove Downtown BID and the City of Glen Cove. Additionally, much of the support for Downtown Sounds comes through sponsorships of the events by various North Shore businesses. This year, the title sponsor of Downtown Sounds is Bethpage Federal Credit Union. This is the second year that Bethpage Federal Credit Union has been the title sponsor. “Sponsorship of Downtown Sounds concert series highlights our long-standing support for Glen Cove and at the same time connects us with potential and existing members,” said Linda Armyn, SVP, Corporate Affairs, Bethpage Federal Credit Union. Additional sponsors this year include Garvies Point, Glen Cove Hospital-Northwell Health, American Paving & Masonry, The Downtown Café, Kimco Realty, Bridge Marine, and Glen Cove Volvo.
* * * The City of Glen Cove has a long history of producing fine musical events, beginning in 1959 with the Morgan Park Summer Music Festival. Downtown Sounds, now in its 19th year, is an annual free concert series originally produced by the Downtown Business Improvement District (BID), now in conjunction with the City of Glen Cove. The events provide a “back to downtown” environment by enriching Glen Cove’s diverse ethnic community through Arts and Culture. Downtown Sounds showcases established as well as up-and-coming performers representing a wide variety of musical styles within a hip, safe and enjoyable surrounding all while promoting business growth and economic opportunity.
Photo Caption L to R: Carol Hammond, Pat McLaughlin, Fred Guarino, Mary Cooper, Francine Koehler, Joe Manfredi, Jennifer Way, Keith Way, Lisa Travatello (hidden), Deputy Mayor Barbara Peebles, Hon. Delia DeRiggi-Whitton, Michael Epstein (hidden), Cindy Siletti, Barbara Bales. Missing from photo: Toni Kessel, Mary Jirsa, Fred DiMenna, Marvin Floyd, Evelina Raso, Tony Tedeschi