Ringmaster Timpanelli: Festival Giving New Life to the City
It’s early Monday morning and I am sitting in my office at the Bridgeport Regional Business Council on the 14th floor at 10 Middle Street. It offers an amazing view of the waterfront and Long Island Sound. I can see as far as Sikorsky Airport in Stratford, Captain’s Cove in Black Rock, almost to Jennings Beach in Fairfield, and everything in between — including the Harbor Yard Sports Complex, the rejuvenated Seaside Park, the magnificent UB campus, and the developing Steel Point peninsula.
I think of three things:
1. The wonderful history of this place that I look upon, a history that of booming economic conditions that provided good jobs for many people for many years, a history as famous as it is infamous, as celebrated as it is inglorious.
2. The fabulous potential of this place that I look upon to provide new jobs in the years ahead and the significant progress that’s been made toward that goal.
3.The complex dynamics needed to sustain the rebuilding of a city and a region.
My thoughts wander to some of the people responsible for our celebrated history. People like Igor Sikorsky who emigrated here from Russia and invented the helicopter. His namesake business has provided so much to our region. Lewis Latimore, a black inventor in 19th century Bridgeport, worked with Edison and Bell on developing the light bulb and telephone. Gustave Whitehead, of both Bridgeport and Fairfield, flew an airplane before the Wright Brothers. And, yes, P.T. Barnum, the entrepreneur, mayor, businessman, real estate developer and showman, was our most famous celebrity. And, they all have one thing in common…they believed in this city and in the region. All those years ago these men saw potential in our community. Which prompts me to think, they leave us a legacy that we must not squander.
No one knows better than I that recreating the glory days of Bridgeport is no easy task. I have been at the helm of the Bridgeport Regional Business Council (BRBC) working to do just that for more than 25 years. And, in fact, rebuilding an old city that was once so heavily influenced by manufacturing requires Barnum-sized vision, planning and regional cooperation.
That’s why I agreed to serve as Ringmaster of the Barnum Festival. I was honored to lead this historic and beloved Festival. And, timing could not have been better as last year’s Barnum Festival leadership, the mayor, city administration and BRBC leadership entered a partnership with an international consultant to help us redefine the festival with an eye toward turning it into a long-term economic development generator for the city and region. So, in 2014 we began, taking a Barnum-sized step toward building something that over time will draw people who will invest in the economic growth of the region by attending and enjoying the Greatest Show on Earth. The Festival now has an executive director, the calendar of events has been concentrated into a two-week period, we invested in a solid marketing plan, and we built a governance infrastructure that will support a successful future.
This year we surpassed our fundraising goal and exceeded past attendance numbers for every event. We started some new traditions. And we recognized our past generations of entrepreneurs.
We built on the success of my predecessor by bringing back last year’s “Pub-Fest” and “Barnum’s Got Talent” events. First-time events like the Greater Bridgeport Symphony concert at Seaside Park and Barnum Bobblehead Night at the Bluefish Ball Park drew audiences to the city. New parade highlights, like stationary bands along the route and fringe circus performers as a part of our downtown events were crowd favorites. And the Ringmaster’s Ball at the airport attracted almost 500 people. The 2014 Barnum Festival team has set the stage for more excitement and entertainment to come!
It was a joy and an honor to have this opportunity. My hope is that we have not squandered the legacy, that we have begun to rebuild a tradition that has strong roots in our community, has had such capable and passionate Ringmasters that have preceded me, and that we have begun to travel a road that will ultimately be an integral part of our efforts to rebuild this wonderful city and recast it as the integral piece of our regional economy that it once was. I believe we will succeed and I thank this community for the opportunity it has given me to be a part of the rebuilding effort.
Let’s continue to celebrate P.T. Barnum Let’s continue to celebrate the Bridgeport region!
