Chicago Scene Cancels Boat Party

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 21, 2011 6:24PM

Guess Ted Widen couldn't convince a bunch of people who wanted to be seen to party under the glow of Hammond. The Chicago Scene publisher has canceled the annual Venetian Night for the Vapid he calls a boat party. The statement Widen posted announcing the cancellation engages in a little bit of spin control.

I called City Hall back in February saying I have a great idea to get the city of Chicago some great publicity let’s try going for the World’s largest Boat party, it will make national news just like when we were in the New York Times a few years ago about the great party we have each year. Well to say the least that back fired on me.

So I started working on getting my Permit into the city when I was told by a high ranking city official not to even waste my time trying to get a permit for the event because they were not going to give me one.

Here's what Crain's Shia Kapos reported June 27:

"We've been doing this for 10 years and never had to fill out a form. It's not property like a park. It's the lake," Mr. Widen says.

Reading further into Widen's statement, we got a real good laugh when he compared the boat party to the World's Columbian Exposition.

What I find to be so sad about this entire thing is that in 1893 just 22 years after the great Chicago fire, the city of Chicago hosted the World’s Fair; more than 27 million people attended the 6 month event that was more than half the population of the United States. In just one day the fair drew over 716,000 people. Why did they have the world’s fair? Because Chicago wanted to tell the world we have risen from the ashes and we are back on the map! But today over 120 years later the city of Chicago can’t handle an event with 500-1000 boats for 6 hours, many of which are in the “Play Pen” on any given weekend. The only national News coming out of Chicago these days is gang members killing each other on the west side and “flash mobs” roaming Michigan Ave. Is this city trying to move forward or go backwards?

See. Widen's just trying to fill the shoes of Daniel Burnham and Frederick Law Olmstead. Only difference is the 1893 World's Fair gave Chicago legacy projects like
the Midway Plaisance. The Chicago Scene boat party can give you different kind of legacy (and a penicillin prescription).

At least we still have this: