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Oktoberfest Off To A Big Start
LA MESA -- A larger than usual Friday night crowd filled the streets of La Mesa for the kickoff of the city's largest annual event.
With perfect beer-drinking temperatures, the lines for beer bracelets were long in the La Mesa Chamber of Commerce Beer Garden and vendors up and down La Mesa Boulevard were seeing heavy traffic.
Oktoberfest Ubermeister Richard Felix early Friday was reviewing preparations before 7 a.m. and said all was in order. "It's like building a little city,'' he said.
Felix said if the good weather predictions hold, the three day event could draw as many as 175,000 people to downtown La Mesa.
The event -- hosted jointly by the La Mesa Village Merchants Association and the La Mesa Chamber of Commerce -- will have the following official hours:
Friday, September 30th 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 1st 11:00 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 2nd 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The five block section of La Mesa Boulevard from Acacia Avenue to 4th Street, and eastbound Allison Avenue from Palm Avenue to Pine Street will be closed to vehicles and open to pedestrians only. Spring Street traffic may be subject to delays.
Normally scheduled bus service on these streets has been routed around the event area, and bus riders should consult with their transit operators for route changes.
As parking around the Oktoberfest is limited, the La Mesa Police Department encourages event patrons to carpool and use the San Diego Trolley, which will be providing additional transportation capacity to accommodate this event.
Parking laws will be strictly enforced. Disabled parking has been set aside in the Lemon Avenue Municipal Parking Lot and Acacia Avenue north of La Mesa Boulevard.
The presence of all animals at this event is prohibited, except for guide dogs, signal dogs, and service dogs as defined by California State law. Violators are subject to arrest.
Police warn that the La Mesa Municipal Code prohibits the possession of all alcoholic beverages at this event except in designated areas such as the Beer Garden, Beer Courts, and businesses licensed by the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Violators of local and State alcoholic beverage laws will be arrested.
Additional event information can be found at the sponsors’ websites:
The La Mesa Chamber of Commerce at www.lamesachamber.net
The La Mesa Village Merchants’ Association at www.lmvma.com
Comment
Comment by Charles Anacker on October 2, 2011 at 9:45am My wife and I sent to the El Cajon Octoberfest based on a positive article in the Union Tribune. After parking only a few blocks away (a good point) and paying $5 each just to get in, we walked around the very crowded event, not seeing a single item for sale at the few booths that had any interest for us. We then saw that there was no seating in the dining area, long lines to buy tickets to get food, and then lines to order the food and drinks. We decided to cut our losses and leave. Perhaps, if we had drank a few beers, it would have been a less boring event, but we didn't and it was.
Today, we will go to the Octoberfest in La Mesa, where it cost nothing to just walk around and see the booths and where we have always found items that interested us. You don't have to be drunk to enjoy it. Unless you are a member of the German-American Club of San Diego, I can see no reason, whatsoever to attend the El Cajon Octoberfest, when you have an admission free, more interesting (and perhaps, less authentic- but who really cares?) Octoberfest nearby in La Mesa.
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