New Haven Independent

This year’s festival, held on Saturday, was the third annual, and was largely funded by the Community Foundation. It was postponed from a rainy Saturday two weeks earlier, and organizers were rewarded with a perfect end-of-summer day. The festival has coincided with a rebirth of the neighborhood.

Besides the very popular horse-drawn wagon ride …

… members of Elm City Cycling (including this reporter) organized a “bike roadeo.” Organizers fitted more than 30 kids with helmets, attached bike lights and bells to their bikes (as Brian Hornby is doing here), and directed some of the kids through a couple of safety exercises.

Here’s a mom fine-tuning the fit of her son’s helmet.

Several bands entertained all afternoon. Kids and adults boogied, strolled or raced around the park on foot and bike. Mural-painting attracted a more contemplative lot.

The tug of war was also a huge hit. (Click on the play arrow to watch a video.)

Key organizer Hope Metcalf said the goal of the festival is to get neighbors out meeting each other, and learning what local organizations, such as the Fair Haven clinic and the City Seed farmer’s market, have to offer. She added that residents were asked to fill out a survey to gauge their feelings about the neighborhood. It asked questions about the quality of life, the cost of housing, how well they know their neighbors, and what concerns they have, ranging from crime to noise to prostitution to traffic.

Metcalf said gentrification is an issue. “Our overall goal is to try to make this a really great place for everybody to live.”

With between 200 and 300 people passing through the park during the afternoon, she said the festival “exceeded my dreams for the day.”