Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, May 4, 1990 TAG: 9005040511
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOE KENNEDY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
In recent years, the class reunion has been held the night before the chili-fest. But the demolition of a portion of the Hunter Viaduct, scheduled to close today at 6 p.m. to make way for the Dominion Tower, makes Campbell Avenue a more vital artery through the downtown area, said Laban Johnson, Roanoke's director of special events.
Rather than tie up the street with reunion preparations on a weekday afternoon, the special events committee opted to combine the events on Saturday.
The chili festival will run from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with some 30 cooks competing for a trip to the International Chili Cookoff in California. Entertainers will include Adam Markham, the Side Winder Band and Nightingale.
The class reunion will be held from 7:30 to 11 p.m. Music will be supplied by the Kings.
Both events are free.
Also, if you're looking for something sweet to follow up that chili, check out the Strawberry Festival in Crestar Plaza. Community School cooks will be serving from 10:30 a.m. until 5:30 p.m.
Market Square will be closed to traffic all day on Saturday, but the Market Square parking garage will be open all that day and evening. Center in the Square will offer many free exhibits, performances and programs on Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m., to celebrate the completion of $3.2 million of construction and remodeling.
Johnson said the usual restrictions apply to both events: Cans, bottles, coolers, pets, bicycles and skateboards will be prohibited.
And so, he hopes, will rain.
"Bad weather has hurt us for two years," he said, explaining that rain has meant the cancellation or disruption of all but two of the market area events in the past two years.
"This has played havoc with our budget and with what we're able to do."
Two longtime events have been dropped from the city's calendar. The Harvest Moon Market Ball, postponed last year by Hurricane Hugo and later moved inside, never drew a sufficient crowd and has been discontinued, he said.
Also dropped is the annual New Year's Eve celebration, which drew plenty of people, but suffered because of increasing problems finding sufficient police, security guards and volunteers to work at the scene.
The special events committee has added two events, a Conservation Festival at Mill Mountain Zoo on June 9 and 10, and a Scottish Festival at Victory Stadium Aug. 31 through Sept. 2. The Scottish festival had previously been held in Salem.
Johnson said good weather is vital to the continuing existence of the city's special events.
"We're in jeopardy . . .," he said. "We don't get a lot of money from the city. . . . Our expenses are going up enormously and revenues are going down for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is that consumption of beer is down."
He said the big party-based activities, like the class reunion, chili festival and beach party, help to pay for things like the Scottish and conservation festivals, which don't generate big revenues.
by CNB