Community Corner

Septemberfest and Home Improvement Show to Kick Off with Fireworks

Septemberfest will be held Sept. 7-9 with the Home Improvement Show set for Sept. 8. Fireworks will be held Friday night.

For the second year in a row, Simsbury's Septemberfest and Home Improvement Show are back after a successful first run in 2011.

Septemberfest, originally organized by the Simsbury Chamber of Commerce for 15 years, was revived last year when the Performing Arts Center Board gained rights to the event and approval from the town. The annual festival had not been organized since 2007.

"It just got too big for our little organization," Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Charity Folk said.

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The initial goal of the event was to create an event that supported local business, hire staff at the COC, and raise one year of operating expenses for the chamber, Folk said. But the event took on a life of its own.

In place of Septemeberfest, the chamber began a Home Improvement show to provide a showcase of the town's local contractors and service providers.

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The chamber and the Performing Arts Center board joined forces in 2011 to offer both events on the same weekend and market them together.

"We tried it and it was successful from day one," Folk said.

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It was successful enough that Septemberfest organizer Tom Vincent, manager of the Performing Arts Center, was ready for a repeat this year.

Septemberfest will be held September 7-9 with the Home Improvement Show scheduled for Saturday, September 8 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Septemberfest hours will be Friday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The rain date for the Home Improvement Show is Sunday August 9.

The main sponsors for this year's event are Simsbury Bank and Mitchell Auto Group. Several vendors participating in the Home Improvement Show this year are also signed on as sponsors.

The event kicks off on Friday with music, food, local vendors, entertainment for kids, and a fireworks display at 9 p.m.

Vincent expects 40 vendors to participate in this year's Septemberfest Business Expo. In addition there will be six food vendors: Kane's Market, Little City Pizza, TCBY, The Meathouse, Red Stone Pub, and J. Foster Ice Cream.

The festival will also offer a performances on the stage every hour ranging from puppeteers to live music. This year Septemberfest will host the Carrie Johnson Band, Preiser O'Brien, the Simsbury Community Band, the Farmington Valley Band, the Coyote River Band, the Farmer Rick Band, and Hay Tonight, a Creedence Clearwater Revival cover act.

There will also be a 'kids corner' that will feature inflatable rides, a railroad ride and a raceway in addition to the roaming clowns and puppeteers.

This year, the Home Improvement Show will get some prime real estate when vendors are allowed to set up right on the green instead of the parking lot behind the Performing Arts Center stage.

Folk is expecting approximately 30 vendors for this year's Home Improvement Show although only half that many have officially registered. The vendors list includes local contractors, financial services, landscapers, designers, and cleaners.

For registration information, visit the Simsbury Chamber of Commerce website.

In 2011, Septemberfest drew approximately 7,000 people. Far from its peak of 21,000 in 2007, but Folk said it was a great start and she is pleased with Vincent's efforts in carrying on an event she helped coordinate for many years.

"He really understands what Septemberfest is all about," Folk said.

For more information about Septemeberfest and the Home Improvement Show, visit the Simsbury Chamber of Commerce website.


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