From rain, to sunshine, to cool and breezy nights, weather in Plant City has been unpredictable for the last few weeks. But it didn’t stop more than 517,000 people from spending at least one day at the Florida Strawberry Festival.
“If we get to half a million, we’re thrilled,” Paul Davis, the festival’s general manager, said.
The closing weekend, March 7 to 8, had particularly high attendance. St. Clement Catholic Church, Turkey Creek Assembly of God and the East Hillsborough Historical Society even sold out of shortcake Sunday, March 8.
“We’ve had a bigger Saturday and a bigger Sunday, but not two days in a row like that in recent past,” Davis said.
He said it helped make up for the somewhat low numbers during the first weekend, Feb. 28 and March 1.
The rain continued to pour out both blessings and curses.
“When it rains, our inside vendors do very well,” Davis said. “Many of our vendors broke records this year.”
But a rainy morning Saturday, Feb. 28, led to the cancelation of the Civitan Youth Parade. Some of the parade participants, including grand marshals Kevin O’Hare and Jackson Hardee, were invited to join the Grand Parade the following Monday.
The musical entertainment this year was as popular as ever. Tickets for REBA, the headliner for the festival’s final concert, sold out, and tickets for John Legend came close to selling out.
Even daytime performers such as Oak Ridge Boys and Loretta Lynn attracted a big crowd.
“Our free seats were totally full, just about, on both of those. The days were beautiful, people really came out and we had great events those days,” Davis said.
Sometimes, on busy, crowded days at the festival, visitors tend to stay only a few hours. But this year that quick turnaround wasn’t as frequent, Davis said. Attendees stayed longer than usual on the closing weekend, and likely other days, as well.
Davis, a former Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office investigator, also was pleased with the way law enforcement officers at the festival handled traffic and safety.
“I thought the law enforcement people did a phenomenal job getting the crowds in, keeping them safe and getting them back out,” he said.
Traffic flow around the festival grounds was smoother than last year, but jams on Interstate 4 were still a problem. The festival staff, Plant City Police Department, HCSO and the Department of Transportation will be meeting to strategize for improvement on the interstate next year.
In addition to offering feedback about traffic flow, Davis said some festival goers have suggested the festival provide more benches and cellphone charging stations.
It was another year of making lifelong memories, celebrating Plant City’s hometown pride and saluting Florida’s long history of agriculture. Now that the excitement has subsided, the town will look forward to the festival’s 81st birthday being every bit as sweet as its 80th.
“It’s just remarkable that 2,500 volunteers show up every single day, to make that a successful event,” Mayor Rick Lott said at this week’s City Commission meeting.
“Each year, I admire the incredible amount of effort and work, time, and dedication … that it takes to put that event on. It’s pretty impressive, and that’s why it has the outstanding support of the community,” City Commissioner Bill Dodson added. “It’s the one time of year where everybody’s pulling in the same direction.”
Daily Attendance
Feb. 26: 26,027
Feb. 27: 24,224
Feb. 28: 23,072
March 1: 72,623
March 2: 39,897
March 3: 26,486
March 4: 33,564
March 5: 39,879
March 6: 47,179
March 7: 89,485
March 8: 94,991
Total: 517,427
Contact Catherine Sinclair at csinclair@plantcityobserver.com.