Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Community Events topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Taylor Farms partners with Guadalupe for fall festival and holiday events; parade and decorating contest planned
Summary
Staff previewed a fall festival in partnership with Taylor Farms featuring a salsa contest, foosball tournament and family activities; commissioners discussed parade participation and a city holiday decorating contest.
Guadalupe City Recreation and Parks staff on Dec. 3, 2024 detailed plans for a fall festival, a winter movie night and other seasonal events, including a community salsa contest and a large foosball tournament in partnership with Taylor Farms.
Staff described the fall festival scheduled the coming Saturday following a daytime art class: Taylor Farms will provide snack packs and branded giveaways, Lobo (a local concession vendor) will sell prepared food, and the event will include a salsa-making contest with 12 entries, a foosball tournament (about 30 registered participants), yard games, a pinata alternative that releases candy via ribbon pulls, and free popcorn and water for attendees. Staff said the salsa winners will be chosen by participant votes rather than a judge panel.
Staff also described winter movie nights planned for Dec. 13 at Leroy Park (6 p.m.) with snacks and hot chocolate provided and a community poetry jam scheduled for Jan. 31 at the vet’s hall.
On holiday programming, staff outlined a Christmas decorating contest and said organizers have not yet received applications; they proposed distributing flyers door-to-door to encourage participation. Staff noted a requirement for entrants to have lights on from sundown to 9 p.m. on a specified span (roughly Dec. 13–24) so visitors can view mapped displays.
Commissioners discussed parade logistics for a mid-December event (lineup at 5 p.m., parade on Saturday the 14th in staff remarks) and whether commissioners and staff could ride or stand in the bed of a pickup (staff said the chief granted parade-day permission for riders in the truck bed; candy may not be thrown from vehicles). Staff also raised the possibility of Recreation-branded apparel (jackets or sweatshirts) for commissioners and volunteers; staff will check budget and procurement rules before buying items.
Staff asked for volunteer assistance with festival setup and outreach; several commissioners offered to help. No formal funding actions were taken at the meeting; event costs were described as covered through existing department budget lines, Taylor Farms in-kind support, and vendor sales.
