Just 39,875 people attended the 2006 Rolling Stones concert on the Halifax Common, far fewer than the “near 50,000 people” figure Halifax mayor Peter Kelly used to gain support for more Common concerts.
The Rolling Stones attendance figure was revealed in a 2007 letter from Barb Stegemann, then the communications manager at Trade Centre Limited, to Beverley Miller, a citizen opposed to the Common concerts. I first posted the letter on The Coast’s website in April of 2010, but that was for purposes of discussing the supposed economic impacts of the concerts. Somehow, I had forgotten that the letter contained the attendance figure until I was reviewing it last night.
“I was badgering TCL staff for information on how they came up with the glowing financial spin-offs information they were bandying about [for the Stones concert],” says Miller. “I doubt [Stegemann] was supposed to give me the numbers, and you will note there is no indication of how they arrived at the per capita economic spin-off number but she did reveal the attendance numbers.”
The letter reads:
Thank you for your letter dated March 28th, 2007. As discussed in my follow up call to you, the attendance expenditures were calculated at 39,875 attendees spending $135.24 each based on an average expenditure survey done exclusively for that event which amounts to $5,257,455.00 in addition to the Event Expenditures of $599,451, the amount is $5,856,906.00.
The attendance figure for the Rolling Stones concert is far smaller than the number Kelly placed on a “marketing card” he intended to send to concert promoters around the world, encouraging them to look at putting on shows on the Halifax Common, “with little or no municipal costs to the promoter.” The Daily News revealed the existence of the marketing card in August, 2007.
The public was given an incorrect impression of attendance numbers at each and every Common concert, and the incorrect impression may have served to bolster public support for the concerts, leading ultimately to the concert scandal.
But for the Keith Urban, Paul McCartney and KISS concerts, city officials merely left the incorrect impression given by promoter Harold MacKay and in the press stand, without correcting the record—it was, if you will, a lie of omission. For the Rolling Stones show, however, Kelly consciously and purposefully put the incorrect attendance figure out into the world personally—that is, it was a lie of commission.
The real Common concert attendance figures are as follows:
2006
Rolling Stones– 39,8752008
Keith Urban– 11,8532009
Paul McCartney– 26,504
KISS– 21,4202010
Black Eyed Peas– 8,362
Alan Jackson– 10,009
This article appears in Dec 8-14, 2011.
I attended 4 of this list of concerts, and though I enjoyed 2 of them, I am almost ashamed that the taxpayers of Halifax were made to subsidize my attendance. Mayor Peter Kelly’s activities re this scandal are truly criminal, and should be scrutinized as such. I am daily amazed at how he has been able to avoid any type of investigation by any type of authority. The average HRM voter has, so far, been kept blind to the scams and criminal activities that Peter Kelly has managed to get away with. This cannot be allowed to continue. I only hope that a critical tipping point has finally been reached, and Kelly and his ilk in staff and on council, will finally become a dark smudge on Halifax’s political history. This is a great city people, wake up and smell the sewage Kelly is peddling! Thanks once again Tim.
Five years later, what is THE COAST trying to prove?? Should we NOT continue having shows? Why is this “local” paper that is supposed to support the city, being so negative? Is THE COAST’S goal to scare away promoters? Might as well scare away shoppers and restaurant goers in the downtown core. The FOUNDATION of your livelihood. Do your writers not understand the IMPACT you can have on the city? Disturbed. – Cole- AtlanticCanadaRocks.ca
@ACRocks: The Coast is trying to prove that there’s a cancer in the highest echelons of City Hall. One where our civic leaders believe they can act outside of the law if it suits them.
Also, promoters approached the city wanting to put on shows without the city’s subsidization, but were turned down flat. The Coast is not scaring away concerts, rather it’s our inept mayor and council that are causing promoters to think twice about considering Halifax as a viable conert location.
Also, Why would you put the word “local” in double quotation marks? Are you trying to imply that the publication is owned by some corporation from outside of Halifax?
Hey @ACRocks1, I assume that you are Cole McLean from AtlanticCanadaRocks.ca You have some great posts there. You list Rush as one of your favourite bands in your profile there. Rush is one of my all time favs as well. If you look further into the articles The Coast, Tim Bousquet, have written on this topic, you will see that a promoter from Ontario approached HRM City Hall and asked to be able to hold a Rush concert on the commons on one of two dates, with no financial assistance from HRM at all. This was turned down in favour of Harold McKay and the Kid Rock fuck up.
The Coast is certainly not against Local Concerts and goes to great lengths to support all things local. The intent of these articles and this great investigation, is only to out the inept and possibly criminal activities of Mayor Peter Kelly and his posse. They are screwing the citizens of Halifax, and we deserve better. Peter Kelly has personally done great damage to Halifax’s reputation in many areas, including the music community internationally. The Coast has done nothing to keep concerts and promoters away from here.
@firepuncher, thanks for the praise! I am well aware of the RUSH/Kid Rock thing, and I agree. Kelly has done many things that have made holding (successful) concerts a tough one for the city. I guess I’m just tired of this constant hater mentality. One of music’s greatest, TOM PETTY is coming! Rather than dwelling on the past today, lets get excited! LET’S ROCK!
Covering this stuff up or forgetting about it is not going to help our city or our concert scene. The Coast is the only effing news agency in our city that finds the poop and shows it to us. Good for them, because everyone else is failing us.
Cole – this is going to blow your mind, but it is not the job of journalists to be cheerleaders for the city.
It’s one thing for city officials to try to boost the city’s profile as an entertainment destination.
It’s quite another for these same officials to continually mislead taxpayers about the supposed economic benefits attached to things like Commons concerts, soccer stadiums and convention centres.
It’s also galling to have a handful of people, some elected and some not, meeting behind closed doors and playing fast and loose with taxpayers’ money.
Thanks Tim for not letting this issue quietly disappear from view. The other media outlets in this town seem inclined to give Peter Kelly a pass when it comes to his screwups.
I’m waiting to see who comes forward to contest the mayoral election next year. Honestly I’m almost ready to vote for a fence post if it means getting rid of Kelly.
if there’s one thing that ACR/Cole said that I agree on, it’s that this newspaper should become more aware and tell the full story! Tom Petty was just announced, and I am thrilled! That will be the greatest concert of my life! why couldn’t we talk about that? Why did they have to post a story about an old show on today of all days? give petty some more press!
The Coast announced Tom Petty’s Halifax appearance three days ago:
http://www.thecoast.ca/SceneAndHeard/archi…