Montavilla Street Fair – Montavilla News

After a two-year hiatus, the Montavilla Street Fair returns this Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. with family-friendly entertainment. Event organizers will block automotive access to SE Stark Street from 82nd Avenue to 76th Avenue on July 31st, making way for the expected 10,000 visitors. Attendees can eat, drink, and shop at 122 vendor booths. Nine music acts span two stages, and a pair of beer gardens offer adult beverages.

Since 2011, the street fair has welcomed Portlanders from all over the city to the historic Montavilla Downtown. Organized by theMontavilla/East Tabor Business Association (METBA), this yearly event highlights the unique businesses and groups in the neighborhood. This year’s Montavilla Street Fair is presented by Adventist Health Portland and Mr. Plywood, with sponsorship by over a dozen other businesses.

METBA invites everyone to stop by throughout the day and take in all that Montavilla has to offer. Organizers will provide public portable restrooms in mutable places along SE Stark street, and food vendors will offer many options to eat at the event. Drivers should expect detours starting at 6 a.m. on July 31st and continue through the evening up to 8:30 p.m. Anticipate crowded street parking in the surrounding area and plan for extended walking to and through the event.

Plaza Stage Music Schedule:

10:00 AM – Tallulah’s Daddy (for kids!) – Matt Lynch (Tallulah’s Daddy) is a children’s music entertainer active in the Kindie Music scene in PDX.
11:30 AM – Mo Phillips (for kids!) – Mo Phillips is a teaching artist and a fun time maker who teaches songwriting in schools and shreds ukulele for the people.
1:00 PM – Norwester Sky – Original tunes that feel timeless while making the Americana songbook feel new again. These fellas take great pride in their craft and love to jam.
2:30 PM – Jermaine – Hailing from gospel choirs in the midwest, Jermaine’s charismatic energy and passion for music is reflected in all of his solo and group efforts.
4:00 PM – Friends of Noise – Friends of Noise provides resources, support and mentorship to youth that have something to say.

Main Stage Music Schedule:

11:00 AM – Hiroki – Hiroki is a force of friends focused solely on grooves, vibes, the result is something smooth; something tasty.
12:30 PM – Five Letter Word – Mix three singer-songwriters, several stringed instruments, and a variety of percussive techniques, and you get Five Letter Word.
2:00 PM – Reb & the Good News – Rebecca Conner’s heart-centered, velvet vocals are delivered with a vulnerability that unravels listeners down to their core.
3:30 PM – Moorea Masa & Friends – “Irresistible and staggeringly beautiful, Masa displays a delicate balance of restraint and raw power.”- The Oh Es Tee

Disclosure: The author of this article servers on the Montavilla/East Tabor Business Association, 82nd Avenue Business Association, and Montavilla Neighborhood Association Boards. All three groups have booths at this year’s street fair.

This years Montavilla Street Fair has been canceled in response to COVID-19. The annual event was set to occur on July 26th and would have been on SE Stark street, as it has for many years. The event is hosted by the Montavilla East Tabor Business Association (METBA). METBA President, Pete Dills, announced the cancelation at the June 16th association meetup.

The decision to cancel this years fair was driven by many factors. Concern for everyones health was the primary reason. Beyond that concern, the States reopening guidelines would also prohibit any event like the street fair. In past years the event has attracted thousands of visitors. Any social distancing plan would be complicated and hard to monitor. “I do not know how we would ‘police’ something like that,” said Dills.

Logistics alone were not the only reason to cancel this years fair. METBA Board member, Carmen Wilson, added that the issues were also financial. The Permits for closing Stark street, from 76th Ave to 82nd Ave, is a large cost to METBA. They would be unlikely to recoup that cost through in donations this year. Instead, METBA wishes to use the funds they have to support local businesses in other ways.

Dills presented a few ideas of how METBA could help local businesses, instead of hosting the street fair. One idea, would try to replicate the business exposer from participating in the fair. The structure of the program would spread out participation over a month, to allow for COVID-19 related restrictions. Currently it’s referred to as “Montavilla Passport.” The Passport would be a mobile-device friendly why to interact with or patronize local businesses. This may be though in person visits or no-contact ways of interacting.

Dills’ other idea, had METBA creating a neighborhood scavenger hunt. Both ideas have the goal to help the residents know “what businesses are open and provide opportunities for the Montavilla community to support their local business district in fun and unique ways.” Wrote Dills in an email to Montavilla News.

METBA is seeking advice and feedback from the community about what can replace the Montavilla Street Fair this year. You are invited to email montavilla.biz@gmail.com with your ideas and thoughts on what METBA should do. Local businesses need extra support this year and now is the best time to start work on how the community can band together.