When it rains, street fair attendees go indoors.
The sixth annual Columbia Waterfront Fall Festival got cut short on Saturday thanks to rain that came midway through the afternoon and left some vendors wringing out their empty pockets.
“To not have made any money cost me quite a bit of money,” said Valerie Dixon, whose New Jersey jewelry line is called Simple Elegance. “It did not work out for me.”
The wet weather put a damper on the day but an organizer said locals flocked to the first half of the festivities, at least.
“The turnout was pretty good,” said Ben Fuller-Googins, program coordinator for the Carroll Gardens Association, adding that local businesses might reap the returns later on. “One of the reasons we do it is just to get some more visibility to the neighborhood.”
The community event featured modern dancers from Cora Dance and live musicians, though only half played because of the weather, according to Fuller-Googins.
At least some who showed up made out all right. Fuller-Googins said after the festival was shut down he called raffle winners to inform them of their prizes, which included gift certificates, flowers, and circus tickets.
“We called all the winners,” said Fuller-Googins. “We had to just do that in our office.”
