With a few thousand extra neighbors to choose from this weekend, the crow went searching for some stories from the crowd to illuminate and inspire. Or at least pass some time until the next set.

Do you have a few minutes to talk to CHS?
Fire away, sister!

We’re here in the Beer Garden, or, as I call this fenced-in area, the “Beer Prison Courtyard.”
I want to go to that prison! If they have beer…

Good point. Are there any Block Party bands that you’re especially excited about?
Major Lazer. They get my body grooving, sister!

How would you describe their music?
Kind of … Reggae meets Electronica meets “crazy.”

Sounds cool. So, this is the first day of Block Party—how do you like the vibe so far?
I’m stoked. Good music, good crowd.

Do you live on the Hill?
Not this hill, anyway. I live on Beacon Hill. But I go out a lot on Capitol Hill.

What are some of your favorite hangouts around here?
The Cha Cha, Linda’s, Social, Perk, Lobby… I could go on and on.

What do you do for a living?
I work for a modeling agency downtown. I scout for models, help run the agency, that sort of thing.

Have you ever used the line “You should be a model…” to get a date?
Oh, no, sister! I don’t date people who are prettier than me!

I love your necklace—a deer’s head. Tell me about it.
I got it on sale at Nordstrom. It’s actually a female necklace—shhhh!

Your secret is safe with me. Is there anything you would change about Block Party?
I wish there were more things to sit on here in the beer “garden.” Maybe a stool, or something?

Have you had any especially memorable experiences here today?
I liked the weird chalk hopscotch area that someone made.

Did you hopscotch?
You know it, honey! I never see a hopscotch without hopping. That would be wrong.

What about Capitol Hill in general? Anything you would change?
I wish people wouldn’t ride their bikes on the sidewalks. That’s really annoying.

Anything else you’d like to add?
Live life to the fullest, on the edge, with no regrets.

Amen to that!
No—gay-men to that, sister!

“Gay-men”?
Like, Amen, only “Gay-men”

I’ve never heard that. Is that something people are saying these days?
Not yet—I just made it up. Feel free to use it!

Did you come here today to see any particular bands?
Actually, I work for a record label, Sportn’ Life Records— one of our bands, Spac3man, was playing at Sole Repair. Tomorrow, our band Fly Moon Royalty will be having a live Google+ hangout.

Working for a record label must be fun. Is that what you do full time?
No, I also work for KEXP.

Wow—you’re totally Living the Dream when it comes to the Seattle music scene!
Music is my life. I feel really lucky to do what I do.

So many people would love to have your job/s. How did you get into this line of work?
I’ve been organizing shows around town for ages. Then, when my boyfriend started the label, I got involved with that. It’s our ten year anniversary this year.

Wait—it’s the label’s tenth anniversary, or you and your boyfriend’s?
The label’s. My boyfriend and I have been together for 11 years.

Congratulations on both! Other than the bands on your label, do you have any local favorites.
Just a few that come to mind are Allen Stone, Keyboard Kid—kind of a hip-hop group, The Lumineers…. There are so many, it’s hard to name just a few. I also started a group called Café Society, that’s all about celebrating women in the local music scene.

Do you feel like female artists are under-represented in Seattle music?
Yes, definitely. But it goes beyond that—so much local music programming is designed for a male audience, and I wanted to create programs that are more geared towards women. Our parties are fun—an opportunity for us to dress up, get your nails and hair “did,” and have a night out with your girlfriends. Oh, and there’s dancing. A girl likes to dance, right?

I know I do. Where can people find out about your parties?
We’re on Facebook, under Café Society.

Whenever you have a group of women who are all “gussied up,” as my grandmother would say, you’re bound to get flocks of men. Does that happen, and if so, does it change the environment?
It does happen, but it’s not a bad thing. It’s first and foremost about the women, but if men respect that, and want to and meet some cool ladies who love good music, why not?

What has been the reaction to this concept?
It’s been overwhelmingly positive. So far, it’s been two years, and we’re still going strong. I think a lot of other women have felt the need to create this space for women, both as musicians and as an audience.

What do you think of the Block Party this year?
It’s great. It’s my first time here, even though I’m a Seattle native. I’m going to come back tomorrow and Sunday, too.

Do you live on the Hill?
No, I live in the U-District. I’m a student at the University of Washington.

What are you studying?
Psychology and anthropology.

Ah, a Liberal Arts degree—you’re just in it for the big bucks, right?
Yeah, I’m not exactly sure what I want to do when I graduate. I want to find a job where I can be happy, but still afford to have a family. I don’t want to sell my soul and work for a corporation, but I can see why people do it. I’m interested in the social sciences—in particular, studying poverty and minorities.

I’m sure there’s a way to study poverty without having to experience it first-hand.
That’s the hope, anyway.

Are there any bands you’re especially excited about seeing at Block Party?
Youth Lagoon is playing tomorrow; I’m looking forward to that. Also, Major Lazer. Father John Misty just played, they were good. There are a lot of pretty new bands here, a lot of them I’m not familiar with. I like finding new music, which is what’s so great about Block Party, as opposed to the music festivals—at a lot of those, it’s all big-name bands that have been around a while. Here, it seems like it’s a mix.

How does this event compare to other music festivals you’ve been to?
It’s weird to be at a festival, but still in the city. I went to Sasquatch earlier this year, and it was great, but you go and camp out. After this, you can just go home.

Is there anything you would do differently, if you were the organizer of Block Party?
Not that I can think of. I’ve had a good time so far. It’s a good crowd. A really young crowd, but I love it that there are also some older people who come out. I see the people in their 50s or older who are here, and I think, “I want to be that guy someday!”

Yeasayer @ CHBP 7-23-10, originally uploaded by spratt504.

At Monday night’s community meeting to collect feedback and try to bridge the gap between Pike/Pine business owners who want to see the Capitol Hill Block Party scaled back and the businesses and festival producers who want to see it continue to grow in stature if not size, there were a few moments of progress. And when a fully employed, well-spoken young person explained that she now worked at a bank and lived on the Hill because of the Block Party, well, we all could see the glimmer of a hopeful future.

“I’m one of those people who got drawn because of Capitol Hill Block Party,” Ashley Keates said.

This intersection of the Cha Cha and Cupcake Royale is the reality of Pike/Pine. And while the rep from Cha Cha who pointed out that Cupcake Royale benefits from the draw of the Hill might have come off as a little abrasive — “There’s a reason your cupcake store is part of this neighborhood. It’s been popularized.” — his point was never negated during the evening. We built this city on rock and roll.

The community session was organized by the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce in conjunction with Block Party producer Dave Meinert as he goes through the permitting process to try to secure a third day for the festival for a second year. The goal Meinert said Monday was to collect feedback for the festival producers to review and then provide an updated plan to the city as part of their application for the 2011 3-day festival permit. Meinert said there will be another meeting in April where specific solutions and logistics will be discussed.

Many of Monday’s speakers represented music and nightlife establishments in the neighborhood who clearly stand to gain financially from a successful Block Party but also provided honest testimony on the value they see CHBP bringing to Pike/Pine and the neighborhood. Mike Meckling of Neumos said he employs 70 people full-time for the three-day run of the festival and that his summer business depends on the Block Party’s success. “We will bring thousands of people into the neighborhood,” Meckling said.

The Stranger publisher Tim Keck — who also stands to benefit financially from the festival as his company handles ticketing for the event — also spoke on behalf of the Block Party. Keck said he’s proud of Pike/Pine. “This neighborhood has really blossomed and done great,” he said. “It’s a big love letter to… our neighborhood.”

Others who said they lived and worked in the neighborhood pointed to the amazing track record of the festival when it comes to safety — no major incidents insider or around the festival in its history — and to the rite of passage it represents to the many musicians who have been part of the neighborhood by day, rocked it from its stages at night and eventually made it to the Block Party spotlight.

We covered a January session of the Seattle Special Events Committee where a group of Pike/Pine business owners spoke out against the growth of the music festival and asked the committee to consider the event’s impact to the neighborhood’s economy. Some, such as Elliott Bay Book Company’s Peter Aaron, claimed big — Aaron said $20,000 — losses the weekend of the 2010 CHBP.

Though Aaron wasn’t in atteandance, many of the same businesses were again represented Monday night in the Odd Fellows West Hall. “While Neumos is employing 20 additional people, I’m sending 20 home,” 12th and Union’s Ferrari of Seattle’s Tino Perrina said. In January, Perrina said the festival should be moved out of the neighborhood but at Monday’s meeting he offered no such demands.

Cupcake Royale’s Jody Hall said, “I love the idea of the Capitol Hill Block Party. It’s such a galvanizer of the coolest neighborhood in Seattle.” But she added, “It’s odd that a festival can just take over the street at the expense of other businesses.” She also asked, rhetorically, what would happen if she organized a kid’s sprinkler party on the streets of Pike/Pine. We know what would happen. We’d be there with our floaties on, that’s what.

The summary case for the five or six businesses most negatively impacted by the Block Party? Their businesses get hurt on very specific, very individual levels. Meinert and crew said Monday night they are eager to, in turn, work out very specific, very individual solutions. “How does this festival benefit a Ferrari business? It doesn’t,” CHBP’s Jason Lajeunesse acknowledged. But he said he respects the problem and wants to work with Perrina to make 2011 a better experience for his dealership. CHS has a suggestion: official VIP Fioranos. And one for local media, too.

Solutions like VIP Ferraris and kiddie sprinkler parties weren’t raised — directly — during a discussion on possible mitigation for businesses that suffer during the planned 3-day event. But we say put them on the list. Here’s what the crowd did suggest:

•    Parking is a problem. Added bus service is needed that weekend
•    Exterior security (what could security do outside the gates?)
•    A hotline to call if there’s a problem
•    More regular clean-up
•    Opportunities for partnership with 12th Ave festival
•    Reduce sneaking in to keep crowd manageable
•    Improve festival footprint and access to storefronts
•    Increased security and garbage while it CHBP is in session
•    Set-up during business hours is a problem. Do set-up during off-hours?
•    Handbooks for musicians and touring parties with neighborhood shop guide and deals

But our favorite idea of the night was a solution that would tie the Block Party to a year-round event that would also benefit the neighborhood merchants negatively impacted by the festival. Ellen Forney of the Capitol Hill arts walk said she would welcome the Block Party’s support. Organizer Meinert has already said he wants to work with the Chamber to redirect some of the Block Party’s nonprofit giving to the specific area of the Hill affected by the event. The monthly arts walk is pretty darned good promotional vehicle for art spaces, galleries and, yes, cupcake stores that might not do as well during Block Party. We vote yes on that one. We also recently offered up some ideas on how the walk could be improved. Money from the Block Party would definitely help.

We’re also, by the way, very much in support of more and better information on the Capitol Hill Block Party Web site. CHS received dozens of calls in 2010 because http://www.capitolhillblockparty.com didn’t list simple things like a ticketing contact phone number. Frustrated, people would search for CHBP information, find our articles about the festival and call us in desperation.

With that as example, it’s not the effort of a few people who hate music and nightlife that will hold the Block Party back. It’s things like not putting a phone number on the site that are partly to blame for the challenges — though, yes, it was clear Monday that there were, too, some people who just don’t want to rock. “Maybe Block Party hasn’t been as involved as they should have been in previous years,” Lajeunesse said about not having worked with the Chamber more in the past. It’s OK, Jason. It’s all change. The Block Party has grown into a big amazing thing. In 2011, it seems like the path is set for another legendary 3-day festival. There doesn’t need to be any bad guys. But, yeah, there might be a boring meeting or two along the way.

Dave Meinert is a partner in Big Mario’s Pizza, a current CHS advertiser.