Lovers of all things fall season are in for a treat this weekend.
The annual Jacksonville Main Street Pumpkin Festival returns to the downtown Jacksonville Central Park Plaza Saturday starting at 10:00 am.
Main Street Jacksonville Executive Director Judy Tighe says the annual festival is fast becoming a classic event for Jacksonville, and this year’s festival is chock full of full for all age groups.
“We have monster mayhem, the apple orchard, cornfield, and pumpkin patch open from 10 am to 2 pm. A petting zoo from 10 to 2. Mike Anderson performing spooky music and stories from 10 to 11 am. The pet costume contest is at 11. The Blazing Wings Challenge from Buffalo Wild Wings is at 11:30, and the fire safety house is running from 10 to 2. The pumpkin pie eating contest is at noon, the pumpkin drop at 10:30, and the kids’ costume contest is at 1 o’clock.”
Tighe says simply walking around and enjoying the sites and sounds of the Pumpkin Festival is free and anyone who wants to participate in any of the events can access all of them by buying a wristband.
“Ten dollars gets you all of this and more. There are crafts, Home Depot will be up there doing craft projects. We’ve got all kinds of games for the kids, opportunities for them to win prizes, we’ve got a photo cutout, and a million cute things going on. Tons of vendors because this is also a vendor fair. So come on up and see all the different products and things that are available from people in our area and kicking off the grand opening of a new store.”
Armbands are available for purchase at the event for $10.00 and proceeds help to fund future Main Street Events. Tighe says besides the Pumpkin Festival, right now is a great time to explore downtown Jacksonville.
“This is a very exciting time to be downtown and to come downtown. So many things going on, we’ve got engaged business owners that do their own promotions, and then after tomorrow, you can come back on November 3rd and we’ll be doing another Sip n’ Shop.”
The annual Jacksonville Main Street Pumpkin Festival is tomorrow from 10 am to 2 pm, with the famous pumpkin drop from the top of the old Sears store building on the north side of the Square at 12:30 pm.
More information is available online at jacksonvillemainstreet.com, or on the Jacksonville Main Street Facebook page.