OAKLAND — When he took office last fall, Town Manager Gary Bowman said he wanted the town to host an annual festival, to take its place alongside such popular summer attractions as the Independence Day celebration in Winslow and the Taste of Waterville.

Five months later, plans are taking shape for a two-day summer festival on the weekend of July 24 and 25, featuring a barbecue competition, an open-air market, street dancing and a modified triathlon.

The festival has been named OakFest, and even though the dates of the inaugural festival are locked in, organizers still face the daunting challenge of creating a townwide event from scratch.

Bowman initiated the idea for a summer festival after he was hired last September, appointing a 14-member committee to organize the event. Bowman said OakFest has the potential to bring the community together, boost tourism and help support local businesses.

The Oakland Lions Club used to host a summer fair every year, but the tradition sputtered to a halt years ago, said Ryan Johnston, an Oakland firefighter and spokesperson for the organizing committee.

“I think it was just the same thing every year, just really small,” Johnston said, explaining the drop-off in interest in the fair.

OakFest organizers want to resuscitate the tradition and hopefully match the summer events held in nearby communities such as Waterville and Winslow.

“We’re hoping to start out small and grow each year,” Johnston said. “We’d like to see it grow into something that is sustainable.”

A barbecue competition, with pork, beef and chicken categories, is planned to be one of the festival’s headline events. The competition will be open to individuals, organizations and businesses, which would pay entry fees, Johnston said. The cost has yet to be determined, and the committee is setting up a website with a PayPal account for competitors. It recently set up a Facebook page to begin publicizing the competition.

The Oakland Fire Department’s annual chicken barbecue will be held on a different weekend, he added.

Other features include an outdoor market with food, arts and craft vendors; music; an evening street dance; a parade; and a “pedal, paddle, pound” modified triathlon that replaces the swimming section with a kayak race.

Now that it has set firm dates, the committee now has five months to tackle issues like drawing up a schedule, finding event locations and fundraising.

So far, it hasn’t decided on a parade route or where to hold the barbecue competition, vendors or dance, Johnston said.

Moreover, even though appointed by Bowman, the committee is not receiving any public funding, so it is dependent on donations, Johnston said. He hopes that local businesses will offer supplies or equipment, such as tents, instead of money, Johnston said. Even though fundraising has been slow, Johnston admits the committee hasn’t been “pounding the pavement” to bring in contributions, but probably will start soon, he said.

Committee members expect to discuss event logistics at their March 9 meeting. The public is welcome to attend the meeting but will not be allowed to participate during the meetings, Johnston said.

So far, public feedback for OakFest has been uniformly positive, said Kathy Paradis, the committee’s chairwoman.

“They love it. They can’t wait for it to happen,” she said. “Our aim is to put Oakland on the map.”

Peter McGuire — 861-9239

pmcguire@centralmaine.com

Twitter: PeteL_McGuire

Copy the Story Link