Artisans, crafters and food vendors will pack Melgaard Park Saturday and Sunday for Arts in the Park.
Like many other planned events in 2020, the annual event took a one-year hiatus due to concerns about COVID-19. But it’s back this year with a full roster of booths, food vendors and activities.
Sponsored by the Aberdeen Area Arts Council, booths are open Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Stacy Braun, executive director for the arts council, said 92 craft booths and another 19 food and beverage vendors will be set up throughout the park with a good mix of businesses from Aberdeen, the immediate region and surrounding states.
“Very surprisingly there are 45 that are brand new and five that have been here before (and are returning after a four- or five-year absence)” she said.
Some of the vendors weren’t even on the Arts Council mailing list, she said.
Of the vendors, 46 are from South Dakota with 20 from Aberdeen or within a 50-mile radius. Of those, 14 are from Aberdeen. In all, exhibitorsr are coming from 12 states, she said.
Of those states, the largest contingencies are coming from Minnesota (14) and North Dakota (10), with other vendors from Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
“We will be supporting people from the immediate area, region and surrounding states,” Braun said. “The fact that pretty close to half of them are from South Dakota and right here in this area is nice, too.”
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