If you plan on driving through Adamson Square on Oct. 29, you might want to find a different route. Main Street and Carrollton Parks and Recreation Cultural Arts Department is teaming up once again for the Carrollton Fall Festival and plan on shutting down the square at 7 a.m. to begin preparations.
With over 30 businesses involved and a wide range of activities planned, Main Street Director Scott Ballentine is expecting between three to four thousand people to show up for the festival.
“It’s a win-win situation,” said Ballentine. “Adamson Square is a fun place, and it has a pretty great vibe. It is also a safe place to bring children.”
Each Main Street business, as well as some of the side street businesses, will provide a safe way for children to trick-or-treat on the square. Side street businesses can put a table in the square while the Main Street businesses give away candy inside their stores.
However, the main goal of the Fall Festival is to bring people to the square and entice shopping and interaction between business owners and citizens.
“If they are downtown, odds are they are going to spend money,” said Ballentine. “If the people downtown are spending money, the businesses are doing well.”
While parents spend their morning looking around and helping local shop owners, children can find an extravagant amount of activities to indulge in, including inflatables, corn hole, storytelling at Horton’s Books, face painting, putt-putt golf and more. Halloween music will play in the background and free drinks, popcorn and snow-cones will be handed out as well.
“We provide an activity for kids and an economic impact for our merchants,” said Ballentine. “For the food, we rent from local vendors.”
At noon, the Amp will host a costume contest for children ages 12 and under. Categories will be by age, and the winners will receive a trophy.
“If anything, come and see the spectacle,” said Ballentine. “You can see the snake of children slither throughout the square.”
The festival kicks off at 10 a.m. and will end at noon with the costume contest. It is free and open to the public.
