The great Milwaukee summer is in full swing. And only OnMilwaukee.com catches the buzz, scoop and inside stories that you just won't hear about anywhere else.

NEW ON THE STREETS

Watch for an influx of street performers and buskers at all times of the day and night in and around downtown Milwaukee in August.

SUMMERFEST SIZZLED

Not only was the weather hot at Summerfest 2002, a new single-day attendance record was set on Fri., July 5, as 138,862 walked through the gates. Other Summerfest buzz includes: 18 percent of all visitors figured out a way to get in for free, Aladdin's sold 5,000 chicken shish-ke-bobs, 16,500 cups of Dippin' Dots (the ice cream of the future) were consumed, 763,000 pounds of ice were used, Culver's scooped 35,000 cones of custard, 1,534 miles of toilet paper were used, two people of 36,500 got holes-in-one and when the last ticket was counted 1,013,182 people experienced the greatest music festival in the world. Summerfest 2003 kicks off on June 26!

CHA CHANG

P.F. Chang's China Bistro opened its first Wisconsin location July 15 at Mayfair Mall.

NOTHING COMMON ABOUT IT

The 2002 Milwaukee Common Council Picnic is Thurs., Aug. 1.

HARP TAKES OVER CORNER

The owners of The Harp Irish Pub will take over operations of The Corner Grill, 2499 N. Bartlett St.

MCGIVERN TALKS IN TAMPA

Milwaukee-native John McGivern is in Tampa this month with "Shear Madness." The St. Petersburg Times did a story on the hometown comedian recently that provided interesting thoughts on the recent challenges within the Catholic Church. McGivern is a gay Catholic who spent almost a decade in a Franciscan seminary, even taking priestly vows, before leaving to become an actor. Read the story here.

WE TIED ONE ON

More than 87,000 people attended Major League Baseball's FanFest at the Midwest Express Center during All Star Week.

MILWAUKEE VICE?

Jane Wooldridge from the Miami Herald visited Milwaukee in April, thanks to the Greater Milwaukee Convention and Visitors Bureau. Her story is great and ran on July 7. Read it here.

WHAT'S THE NEW STORY MORNING GLORY?

Let The OMC Buzz be the first to tell you that the 8th Annual Morning Glory Craft Fair has a new location. A former Prospect Ave./East Side institution, this wonderful event is coming downtown to the

Marcus Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday and Sunday, August 10-11. For more information, www.wdcc.org/.

TINSEL AND TRIM

Here's another "you heard it on OnMilwaukee.com first!" The first annual Tinsel and Trim holiday/Christmas show will be held November 22-24 at the Midwest Express Center downtown. The event will feature a juried art fair and more than 60 exhibitors showcasing home decorating, arts, crafts, music and even a children's area. The Greater Milwaukee Association of Realtors is organizing the show.

SPEAKING OF FIRSTS!

First Stage Children's Theater's 2001-'02 ticket sales hit 130,000 tickets following the close of the company's popular "Mike Mulligan and his Stream Shovel" in June. The number was a more than 15 percent increase over last season.

A GOOD PLACE TO BE SINGLE

Milwaukee ranks again, this time it's Forbes that is saying good things about our city. Check out their rankings for the "Best Places to be Single" here. We ranked above many cities and came in at #23.

MEQUON COMPANY SHINES

Lakeside Development Company, a Mequon-based residential and commercial architectural and construction management firm, was chosen as one of the "101 Best Companies to Work For" by Professional Builder, Luxury Builder and Professional Remodeler magazines.

FLORIDA TO WISCONSIN FOR YPM'S BIRTHDAY

Young Professionals of Milwaukee (YPM) is giving the younger set in town a voice. And on August 8 the group has scheduled its Birthday Bash

to celebrate its first year and the positive buzz the group has created. To help the celebrations, acclaimed speaker and professor Richard Florida, author of the "The Rise of the Creative Class" will speak. Florida will discuss what Milwaukee needs to do to continue to become a thriving city. For more detailed event info and to register, log on to ypm.mmac.org/.

AL VS NL

Milwaukee really "tied one on" during All Star Week. We loved the AL and NL illumination on the US Bank Building, the classy banners and signage downtown, Fan Fest, the beautiful All Star Gala at MAM but could have done without the taped up Pepsi posters that appeared on many downtown windows, without regard for commercial or private property.

WHEN THE WALLS

As part of the ongoing Milwaukee Theatre Renovation Project, demolition of the north wall of the former Milwaukee Auditorium began on June 17.

TAP INTO FAITH

The "Theology on Tap" series is back beginning July 15 at Holy Rosary, 2011 N. Oakland Ave. A great opportunity to put a little faith into summer activities. Call (414) 769-3362.

FREE PREVIEW

Get to the Cabot Theatre inside the Broadway Theatre Center on Wed., July 24 at 7 p.m. for a free preview of the Skylight Opera Theatre's 2002-'03 season. Call (414) 291-7800.

{INSERT_RELATED}

PRESENT MUSIC, PRESENT CASH

Present Music announced that its revenue from ticket sales in 2001-'02 increased by 45 percent over ticket revenue in 2000-'01. Present Music ended its 20th Anniversary season with ticket sales of $55,500 an increase of $17,370 over its ticket revenue of $38,043 in 2000-'01. Revenue from subscriptions was $26,833 and revenue from single tickets sales was $28,580.

MORE TIME

The new summer schedule at the Eisner Museum allows you more opportunities to enjoy the unique museum during these long, lazy days. Offering evening hours on Thursdays, the Museum will remain open until 8 p.m. On Saturdays the Museum is open at noon-5 p.m. and Sundays from 1-5 p.m. Wednesdays and Fridays will retain the current 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule. The Eisner Museum is closed regularly on Mondays, Tuesdays and major holidays.

A BANNER MONTH DOWNTOWN

The Westown Association has begun installation of 63 bright blue street banners throughout Downtown Milwaukee, west of the Milwaukee River. The banners will be used to identify the Westown neighborhood, which is bounded by the Milwaukee River on the east, I-43 on the west, the Menomonee River on the south and the Park East corridor on the north. Banners will be installed on major Westown corridors including Wisconsin Avenue, Michigan Street, 6th Street and Plankinton Avenue.

NATIVE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS COMING TO MILWAUKEE

The Native American Music Association and the Potawatomi Tribal Community will present the Fifth Annual Native American Music Awards at the Marcus Amphitheater on Sat., Sept. 7. The Native American Music Awards honors and recognizes the inspiring and outstanding achievements of Native American musicians from across the country.

VINCE IS BEST

FOX 6 chief meteorologist and OMC columnist Vince Condella traveled to the American Meteorologist's annual meeting in Williamsburg in late June where he was honored as Meteorologist of the Year. Congrats, Vince!

CREAN OF THE CROP

The 2001-'02 Marquette men's basketball program finished the year ranked 21st nationally (out of 321 Division I teams) in average home attendance, according to figures compiled by the NCAA. The Golden Eagles, the owners of a 16-0 home record this past year, played before an average crowd of 12,680 fans over the 16 home dates, a 13.2 percent increase from 2000-2001 when MU ranked 31st with an average of 11,194 per home contest.

BRADY ST. BUZZ

Brady Street will host "A Taste of Brady" on Thurs., July 25, 5-9 p.m. For a $10 donation to the Brady Area Arts and Education Fund, you'll get discounts, samples and specials at all the great shops, restaurants and bars along the street. Call (414) 274-2553.

MORE GOOD NEWS FROM MAM

There is plenty to be excited about at the Milwaukee Art Museum, even though the daily paper continues to make you think otherwise. This year's membership campaign has surpassed the $1,000,000 mark in funds raised ... a first in this program's history. Attendance is also doing fantastic. The week of July 8's weekday attendance exceeded 1,000 each day (normally the high end would be about 700) with weekend numbers between 1,500 and 2,000 per day.

ALLIANCE FORMED, PARKING ADDRESSED

A group of business leaders, property owners and employers, led by Milwaukee Downtown B.I.D. #21, have formed the new Alliance for Downtown Parking and Transportation to work on parking and transportation issue and promote improvements in the greater downtown area. They will work on several "issues" including The Milwaukee Connector project, Marquette Interchange, and parking communications.

BAY VIEW RISING

Good things keep happening along South Kinnickinnic Avenue in Bay View, where recently news was that the Avalon Theater is getting a new lease on life. In addition to Au Bon Appetit opening a second location there, an Aveda salon is opening soon.

RESALE RETIRED

East Side bargain hunters lost a landmark when the Salvation Army closed its Prospect Avenue location recently. Alterra Coffee is now using the space for offices and other uses. In related news, Alterra is now looking at an August opening date for its new lakefront cafe, which will serve sandwiches and other items along with the expected coffee and baked treats.