City Talk: Savannah is better off without Rock ‘n' Roll Marathon

This is the City Talk column by Bill Dawers, a longtime contributor to the Savannah Morning News.

I remember being exhilarated by the first installment of the Savannah Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in 2011.

The city was still recovering slowly from the deep 2007 - 2009 recession. Hoteliers and restaurateurs were struggling to fill beds and seats, especially in off-peak months like November.

The marathon brought thousands of runners and their families to town, created tremendous opportunities for promoting Savannah as a destination and dangled promises of big-name bands performing in Forsyth Park each year near the finish line.

But problems became clear early on.

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The full story: What does the loss of the Rock 'n' Roll marathon mean to Savannahians?

I’ll give bonus points to any readers who remember that the 2011 headliner was Carolina Liar. There were some excellent acts through the years, especially Michael Franti & Spearhead in 2018, but the programming never lived up to the early hype.

Some problematic logistical choices made that inaugural marathon more disruptive than necessary, and each year seemed to create unnecessary problems for business owners, workers, residents and even other visitors.

Each year, residents across a huge swath of the city found themselves caught in gridlocked traffic and a maze of road closures.

And the impacts were not confined to the Saturday of the race itself. Contractors sometimes began blocking off parking several days in advance. The disruptions to daily life and the pressures on city services would have been easier to accept if the race were organized by, say, a local charity rather than a for-profit business based elsewhere.

The public mood about tourism was also turning darker and darker by the middle of the last decade.

Kristin Russell, owner of The Sentient Bean and Brighter Day Natural Foods on Park Avenue, conveyed a widespread public sentiment about the end of the marathon when speaking to Savannah Morning News reporter Katie Nussbaum last week.

“I have no idea what the politics behind this particular decision were, but I am overjoyed that they might actually be starting to consider that we don't need to sacrifice any more neighborhoods to tourism,” Russell said.

Over the years, it has been disappointing to hear some marathon supporters paint opponents as elitist squelchers who will also try to cancel St. Patrick’s Day. Sure, St. Paddy’s attracts tourists, but the celebrations are part of the very fabric of the city.

I think that the most compelling arguments for eventually bringing back the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon have to do with the race’s spotlight on the local running community and public health. I hope that various organizations can explore new ways to achieve those goals.

Broadly speaking, Savannahians want a city for locals where tourists feel welcome, not a city for tourists where locals feel unwelcome. The Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon might have been a good fit for Savannah a decade ago, but not anymore.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah will not miss the Rock ‘n' Roll Marathon