The Ticker conducted a survey of 83 downtown retailers and restaurants, the findings of which can be found here. Survey participants' comments are shown in full below:

As a Traverse City local and downtown businessman, I have very mixed feelings regarding the Cherry Festival. I have watched what was once an extremely beneficial week of festivities transform into a haphazard carnival for the people of Michigan to travel to our town and treat it with no respect at all. I am sure that Cherry Fest is still beneficial to our local economy, with that many people converging on TC for the week how could it not be, But at what cost? The attendees feel no responsibility to clean up after themselves, thus the town is trashed and remains so for sometime after the festival. All of the grass at the open space dies off and is trampled flat, the beach is littered with garbage and beer cans, and each year seems to bring more danger and uncertainty, The Kelly Boyce tragedy still ringing loudly in all local residents ears. At our storefront the biggest concern during the festival is shoplifting, we do slightly more sales than a typical summer week but I am sure we have more product walk out the door unpaid for in that one week than we do all summer. The Cherry Festival NEEDS to be retooled in a much more community driven fashion, the demographic that the festival currently markets to is NOT the type of people I want swarming my shop.

I believe they need to reinvent the entire event, it’s an embarrassment and lacks the class this town represents. It could be locally sponsored, with local music, local food, local vendors only. A true celebration of the area and its harvests and wares. Its seems to have become a big, tacky circus and it pushes away the locals and the tourists that are our “summer crowd.” The crowd that it attracts is careless, disrespectful, and doesn’t even look up from their beer to see and appreciate the beauty of the area.

Move it to the fairgrounds as far away as possible from downtown.

If you move it later in the season you would have cherries to give out.

About the same amount of money with the Film Festival but more stress with the Cherry Festival. I love them both! The two weeks between the two are the best. People would be really upset if the Cherry Festival was moved to the fairgrounds.

We don’t know the benefit of amusement park in the parking lot. Makes sense in the Open Space, but it doesn’t in the parking lot – there is nothing specific to TC.

Regardless of what is happening, July and August are booming.

Anything that brings people to TC is good. It gets a little crazy; it would be nice to have events move into fall and spring to even out the revenue flow. Also, so crazy [that] local people avoid downtown during festivals. All of the events are great, the more the better. But we have highs and lows. Let’s spread it out.

I got to enjoy it with my kids for the first time. It was convenient. We are still busy. Cherry Fest has the food courts that take away from downtown – yogurt, burgers, more kids. Film Fest - wine, entrees, seafood.

Much cleaner with trash this year. Seemed like more was actually done and not just pushed onto business.

Out biggest sales week of the year.

The Cherry Festival is great for our business, but sometimes the festival goers destroy our downtown store with vandalism, which brings mixed reviews.

Sales are up during National Cherry Fest. Traffic as well.

Cherry Festival has always been great for business downtown.

The Cherry Festival is great for Traverse City. We love it!

I love the family events and absolutely love the Blue Angels. It brought in a lot of people. We had outstanding business this year.

Slowest week of July for us.

If it’s hot, people will come in and eat. But if the weather is cool, they stay at Open Space. Overall it does help, it increases business 20-30 percent.

It brings new business, but pushes locals away from TC.

I think that, in its current form, its time has passed.

Our business (retail) does not benefit from the Cherry Fest crowd. Very tired of picking up trash on the street and beachfront. Open Space/sidewalks are too crowded for public use.

Over the past 28 years of retail in downtown TC, the Cherry Festival business has declined! Our customers are local and summer residents. They do not want to deal with the Cherry Festival. Move the Cherry Festival to end of May-1st of June, the way it was meant to be. Listen to Jack Lane’s comment? Festivals are over/we are busy. (No festivals).

It hurts my business, but it is tradition so it is what it is.

A long standing TC tradition. We seem to be losing some of our things people know and love to come and celebrate with us. I don’t like the attitude of some people who seem to have the “I’m here in TC close the door and do away with everything.”

It’s not good for our business, but it’s good to represent the town in a positive way. But I feel out to the fairgrounds is fine. It’s gotten too big. All the corporate blowups are a little obnoxious.

Keep it the way it is.

Trash needs to be better attended to on Front Street.

The Cherry Festival does not enhance our business in any way. In fact, it is a deterrent to our business. We would not be sad to see the venue move out of the downtown area or be eliminated altogether.

The midway is too long. A few days would be better.

I think having 4th of July separate from Cherry Fest would be good because it would give us another event week. For example, if it’s the week after 4th of July. But all in all, great job!

I think we advertise too much that the festival is inexpensive or free. People coming expect that and it reflects in our sales. They don’t buy much because of the demographic of people you target. The Film Fest are very different people who spend money.

Not a fan.

I think it is a tradition.

Our normal customers stay away because of traffic and parking. They come before or after the fest. The Film Festival has more people buying.

I believe it brings in the wrong kind of people. The city is a mess for days. The beach, OMG!

It’s good for business, but putting it away from the Fourth would spread out business for the downtown.

I love it.

Fun and great moneymaker!

Does not bring any extra business for our store. Deters local customers from shopping downtown during that time.

Move to later July time and less than a week.

It would be nice to tone down the “fair” aspect and get it back to local sponsors.

It was written in a Northern Express editorial that businesses didn’t know what they were talking about “that the Cherry Festival’s masses of people were not. The man writing the editorial and other media contending all the masses are good for traffic are invited to look at business numbers. They are down from other periods in the summer. Every foot is not buying. A great number of feet are using retail for entertainment. Cherry Festival costs our business more money…extra staff to monitor theft. Less sales. I invite those who write about business on Front Street to visit retail areas (non food) and visually see what sales actually are.

People are here for free events – not to shop. Every time street is closed no shopping happens.

Need to move away from holiday weekend. Shorten length. By the end of festival everyone has burned out.

While I rarely participate other than keeping our retail store open…I’m grateful for the business in brings to TC!

I think the city should leave the NCF alone. The NCF has done a fantastic job at reinventing itself and changing with the times. They have become an economic driver for all of Northern Michigan, and not just the Grand Traverse area. As a downtown merchant, both the NCF and the Traverse City Film Festival are great for our community. Two different events that attract two different demographics. Are these two weeks a pain in the butt? Hell yes! Do the merchants triple their business revenues in these two weeks? If you have public restrooms, maybe 15 percent. But the economic impact of these two events in this region pay tenfold throughout the year.

Too long, overgrown. Stifles traffic and way too expensive! Too many vendors!

No longer a celebration of cherries. Shorten to one weekend. July 4th should be its own celebration. Doesn’t/did not help our business.

NCF has a lot to offer. The business is best during those days. There’s a lot going on. That’s why in my opinion the parade is too much. It’s way too long and we don’t do any business during those five hours.

We stay very busy during Cherry Festival! I like when it falls close to the 4th, just not overlapping with it.

Great for business. TCFF and Cherry Festival are two completely different types of customers.

The last three years have been much better. The new people seem to have more $ to spend.

We like the NCF. But it does keep our regular and local clients away from downtown during the week. Fourth of July is busier for us without the NCF.
It could be shortened and moved to be sure. We would have a great deal more success with our local customers support during the 4th. They simply do not come down and brave the Blue Angel traffic that is. Move it and shorten it and I would benefit.

I think the beer tent times should be revisited so that nighttime traffic into downtown can be more evenly streamed out. Anytime you have mass amounts of people exiting late at night, you’re going to have issues. Our staff is always on edge, just waiting for the people to hit. It will be all of the sudden – wham. They could close at 9 or event 10 and that would help. 11 is hard. The tent’s also competing with the downtown bars.

I just don’t think the NCF does enough to integrate itself into downtown. It’s almost like two separate things that are happening when that’s going on (NCF and downtown). I don’t think there’s a benefit to the downtown businesses for the festival. But Film Festival is awesome! Let’s do more things like that.

Anytime you drop 100,000 people into a town, some of them are going to turn into customers. So there’s that. But really the vast majority of people going to NCF aren’t our customers. NCF folks tend to stick to their own events. They’re eating at the midway, not the restaurants. I think Front Street’s demographics have moved and the Cherry Festival’s have stayed where they are. Downtown is upscale and boutique and that’s our demographic now – I’m not sure it’s the Cherry Fest’s. NCF is a good thing but it’s too big and goes too long.

The Cherry Festival makes our year. Our business would take an enormous hit if the festival were to be moved from downtown or shortened. Its location is what makes the fest so unique and brings in so many revenue-producing tourists year-round.

Great festival, very good for business. The closing parade is very long which isn’t good for business.

Too long and no longer relevant, especially that the entire Open Space is stuffed with midway rides and carnival food vendors. Very low brow scene for this area that promotes great restaurants, wineries, breweries and nature!

I listen to what my customers say – they love it!

I think that although the Cherry Festival brings bodies to the town it isn’t increasing the town’s report of identity and I feel like that is a very important thing to look at.

Feature more local businesses/vendors at the fest. Fewer out of town.

Great for business!

We are very lucky to have the tourism that is part of all the festivals.

If Cherry Festival were located somewhere else, the fairgrounds for example, only the people who are good for downtown would come down here. It would be like an automatic filter to keep out the riff-raff. Our regular clients cancel appointments to avoid downtown during Cherry Festival.

I believe it needs to be revamped and updated. Bring back some of the Heritage Parade ideas.

The festival should be renamed “The National Carnival.” The festival is expensive, beyond what young families can afford, it creates a climate of visitors that leave a trail of trash and disrespect of the downtown. The only great part is the “air dog event.”