On June 11, Locust StreetFestival turns 30 years old,making it one of the longestrunning neighborhoodfestivals in the city.

The festivities started as acelebration of neighborhoodtriumph. City engineershad a plan to widen LocustStreet into a Boulevard,bulldozing fifteen businessesand displacing over fiftyfamilies and individuals. Inanticipation of this eventualplan, the City had allowedLocust Street to slip into adeteriorated state with hugepotholes, crumbling curbs,and few working streetlights.

“FIX IT UP,DON’T TEARIT DOWN!” wasa slogan seenoften on T-shirtsof neighborhoodactivistsopposed to thedevelopment.These activistswere organizedby ESHAC,the East SideHousing ActionCommittee.ESHAC foughtfor tenants’ rights,publishing anewsletter that reported onslumlords and offered legaladvice. They even gave outan annual Golden Rat Awardto the worst slumlord.

One of ESHAC’s targetsand frequent Golden Ratrecipient Dan Giwoskytried to sue the group andphysically attacked themmore than once, eventhrowing a log at one of themembers.

The group also helpedstart the Gordon ParkFood co-op, a credit union,and other communityorganizations.

I spoke to Jeff Eagan, anearly ESHAC member, abouttheir involvement with theLocust Street development.

“It was a struggle for thestreet, through a lot of hardwork in the community,”he said. ESHAC had movedtheir offices to Locust Streetand shortly thereafter foundout about the developmentplans. A May/June 1974ESHAC newsletter headlinepleads, “SAVE LOCUST ST.”

The group hit the streetwith petitions and organizedneighborhood meetings.Some people were in favor ofthe development, but most ofthese people were interestedonly in the relocationpayment so they could“ditch” the neighborhood.But many people, includinglong-time residents, opposedit.

One of these olderresidents is quoted in a May1976 ESHAC newslettersaying (on an upcoming cityhall meeting), “I’m going togive them hell. The city isn’ttearing down my home sosome hotrodder can save twominutes on his way to UWMor the beach.”

The meeting he mentionedtook place on June 9, 1976.The day before, ESHAChosted a rally and pressconference outside itsoffice. The rally featured aperformance by the FriendsMime Theatre, a performanceart and juggling troupe. Thenext day, school buses wereloaded up with residents.They headed to city hallfor a meeting, which endedwith the City’s PublicImprovements Committeeunanimously rejecting theplan.

Local alderman SandraHoeh was one of the peoplewho made the case formaking improvements on thestreet.

“I don’t think this is adying neighborhood, I wantto preserve it,” she said.

In September 1977,the deteriorating curbsand broken gutters werefixed up and repaved.The neighborhood againcelebrated with a LocustStreet re-opening party. Aribbon cutting event tookplace with the aldermen, andthe Friends Mime troupereturned. The taverns servedfood and drink, and theRiverside High marchingband and Sammy’s PolkaBand were among theperformers.

Locust Street Festivalhas always featured a richdiversity of performers. Someof the early performancescame in the form of blues,punk rock, Hispanic andAfrican music, and polka.

“One of the early placeswas Big Ray’s Tap (nowSunrise Foods). Big Raywould put down sheets ofplywood on top of one ofthe pool tables in a backroom and have a polka bandperform on top of it,” Eaganremembered.

Since those days, LocustStreet Festival has becomea neighborhood institution,a beginning to summertimecelebration in Riverwest. Acelebration that the street stillexists as it is.

As Jeff Eagan said,” If theBoulevard had gone through,it could have been the end ofRiverwest.”