City to host street fair
By Kelly Kingen
Summer
Reporter
A collection of summer flowers, fresh garden vegetables
and retail goods will line the streets of downtown Lafayette this weekend,
making the area look more like an open-air market than a commercial center.
In efforts to draw more people to the downtown area,
the Downtown Business Center and the Downtown Merchants Association recently
revived what was once a long standing tradition- The Sidewalk Sale.
The Sidewalk Sale, where local vendors move their
merchandise to the sidewalks, was brought back last year as a way to reacquaint
people with the downtown area and boost clientele, said Debbie Goode,
owner of Perfect Solutions.
Karyl Traeger, owner of The Green Door, said downtown
Lafayette was once a viable place, hopping with activity, but when the
mall and the all the shopping centers began springing up in other areas,
downtown businesses began struggling.
Traeger said that The Sidewalk Sale has brought more
local residents and out-of-state visitors back to the downtown area, benefiting
the local merchants.
"I think it (The Sidewalk Sale) brings a lot of awareness
to downtown. If you walk around, you will see a lot of neat little stores,"
Traeger said.
The Sidewalk Sale is being held along with the Farmers
Market, another long-standing tradition, on Saturday.
The Farmers Market, a 160-year tradition that brings
local farmers downtown to sell their fresh garden grown vegetables, will
begin at 6:30 a.m. and end at approximately 12:30 p.m. People will be
able to purchase tomatoes, bell peppers and green beans.
From 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., people can stroll the streets,
stopping to browse through the antique, art and gift boutiques. A trolley
will also be available from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. to take people from shop
to shop. The trolley is provided by the Lafayette Bank and Trust.
Scott Greeson, a local musician best known for his
folk and country western music will also be performing from 10 a.m. until
noon. Free popcorn will be given out throughout the day, complements of
Union Planters Bank. Red Strange's miniature zoo and WASK radio station
will also be on site.
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