This Sunday, Montavilla’s Street Plaza will host a Carnival popup from noon to 5 p.m. This all-ages community event is a fundraiser for yet another neighborhood event, Nightmare on Taylor Street, occurring on Halloween. Organizers have an assortment of kid-friendly activities planned for the August 13th Carnival at SE 79th Avenue and Stark Street. For the adults, sponsor Threshold Brewing will serve up beer while future Taylor Street business La Osita will also partake in the festivities, selling burritos to hungry participants.
Carnival activities include variations of traditional carny games, raffles, face painting, clowns, photo ops, and dancing. Each child attending receives three tickets to use on the games. They can choose from a water-gun-based challenge where participants take aim at balls placed inside castle windows. People can test their dexterity at two ring toss stations or by popping balloons with a well-thrown dart. Local businesses donated items, services, and gift certificates to raffle off to lucky winners. Two face painters will apply their craft, and a roaming Tarot card reader will attempt to peek into people’s futures. Clown Michael O’Neill from Nomadic Theater brings physical comedy to the event, while dance team Izohnny provides graceful motion.
This weekend’s donations and carnival earnings will support the Montavilla Halloween tradition of Nightmare on Taylor Street. Tim Marino, who goes by Mr. Timmy Tumbles when coordinating community events, has led an effort to unify the neighborhood through an annual scary holiday celebration. On October 31st, Marino and his neighbors close SE Taylor Street from 76th to 80th Avenue, creating a kid-friendly and adult-entertaining day of activities. It is a safe and scary space with elaborate decorations and activities. Marino is happy to contribute hours of his time to make this event possible. Decoration storage costs thousands, and candy can top $700 each year. In most years, the cost was manageable. However, last year’s snowstorm destroyed tents used for the event, and other theming expenses took the project over budget, requiring community support.
The annual block party began in 2016, taking inspiration from the existing Halloween celebrations occurring at the Taylor Court Grocery store. “Mel and Earl used to have the kids come in with their Halloween costumes, take photos, and create a community board for everyone to see,” said Marino. “I wanted to keep their tradition alive, providing a safe place for the community to come together.” Mel Hafsos and Errol Carlson owned the historic grocery near SE 80th and Taylor. They closed the store during the pandemic, and both passed away over the last few years. Their former store will soon reopen as La Osita restaurant. Thanks to the efforts of residents on SE Taylor Street, that community tradition continues for all of Montavilla. It has reached crowds of 1100 people and even attracted hundreds during inclement weather like last year’s Halloween rainstorm.
Tim Marino adores Halloween and enjoys how it brings people together regardless of their divisions. For him and the residents around Taylor Street, this is the magical holiday they look forward to each year. “It’s the only time someone can go from being absolutely frightened, then laugh about it in the blink of an eye. [That’s] why the kids look forward to coming back every year,” explained Marino. He hopes everyone will enjoy Sunday’s carnival that pays homage to this year’s Nightmare on Taylor Street theme, Kreepy Karnival. People not interested or able to attend the carnival can donate to the Halloween event through Venmo and PayPal.
Images in this article provided by Tim Marino