Planning is in full swing to bring back the Ceres Street Faire to downtown Ceres for the first time since the pandemic began.

The event will be held the first weekend in May, Saturday the 7th and Sunday the 8th.

The last Street Faire took place in 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic and state regulations shut down the event that would have occurred in 2020 and lingering regulations ended prospects for a 2021 event.

“We’re really excited,” said Lisa Mantarro Moore who is a key member of the Ceres Street Faire Committee. “We know that the community has been looking forward to the Street Faire and we are putting it back together after our brief hiatus due to COVID.”

Faire goers can expect the event to include its traditional fare, including the Saturday-only car show lining Fourth Street south of Magnolia Street, food sold by non-profit Ceres organizations along the eastern edge of Whitmore Park, as well as craft booths selling unique items, a kiddie carnival and local entertainment. A Sunday RV show will return from its debut in 2019 before the pandemic shut down normal life.

“We are currently accepting applications for all the vendor booths and the car show, all which are available on the ceresstreefaire.org and Ceres Chamber website,” said Mantarro Moore.

She believes the craft faire may attract more vendors than in prior years.

“It appears as though the number of people that have taken up handcrafted items during the COVID times seems to be reflected in the number of people applying for arts and crafts style booths.”

The committee is coordinating schedules for local groups such as youth dancers and karate groups. Local favorite country singer Greg Scudder of Ceres will return after a brief hiatus from singing.

“He is a big draw because he is of Ceres and people ask for him every year so we’re really happy to be supportive of him,” Lisa noted. “He’s very helpful to us.”

Details are also being worked out on which nonprofit organizations will be selling which food products to faire goers on Third Street.

“Some groups and programs and vendors may have moved on in their lives so we’re just trying to put our event back together and remind people that we’re still here and we are appreciative of our 32-year commitment to Ceres.”

While the children’s play area and carnival type rides will be offered, Mantarro Moore is not sure yet which ones will be included. 

As far as challenges in bring back the Street Faire, she said some sponsors have “moved on” or their contact people have changed so the committee has had to re-establish itself.

Sponsors are important, she said, because they help to underwrite the costs of putting on the two-day event.

“The Ceres Street Faire is not a money-making adventure,” explained Mantarro Moore. “It’s a thing to bring a program to our community and allow the nonprofits and local vendors to make funds to help support them throughout the year. So the sponsors are crucial for our ability to put on a healthy Street Faire. We don’t spend our funds on anything other than the Street Faire.”

Expenses have gone up with insurance and security and fees for tents, she added.

The committee is expected to flesh out the structural details of the event by the end of this month.

“We’re still giving a lot of these groups the opportunity to meet their qualifications and see if they can pull off their responsibilities for the Street Faire,” she said.