Kempenfest is back at the Barrie waterfront this weekend and is expected to see about 150,000 people by the time the four-day festival ends on Monday.
The 51st annual arts and crafts and live entertainment event kicks off Friday at 5 p.m. when the doors open to the music portion of the weekend. Rock band Finger Eleven hits the stage shortly after.
This year’s event will feature more than 300 arts and crafts exhibitors, 30 antique dealers, 34 food and beverage outlets, two entertainment stages with more than 40 hours of programming, the Ontario Turkey Farmers Kids Village, and the Robertson Amusements Theme Park Midway.
Bob Stones, who is the chairman of the event this year, said it has been a hectic week, but one everyone is ready for.
“We started planning this about August of last year, so now we’re as ready as we will be and looking forward to a busy but fun week,” he said. “We have all the crafts and booths people love to see, as well as some great music we really lucked out on by getting.”
Canadian rock legend Tom Cochrane headlines Saturday night while country crooner Jade Eagleson takes over the main stage Sunday evening.
“Those will happen on the OLG Main Stage over by the Southshore Centre, with vendors and entertainment lining the lakefront all the way around to the kids area,” said Stones. “On the north end, we have the fair and the KOOL FM stage with music for the families and some professional wrestling, with all of that being free.”
The amusement rides and games will be at the north end of Centennial Beach, with Friday night being sponsored by Tim Hortons. Any child wearing a Timbits jersey getting on rides for free.
Something new at the festival is a large, interactive mural.
“It's a paint-by-number mural that was designed by a local artist that will be available for anyone, kids especially, to fill in part of it,” said Stones. “It will then be on display with the City of Barrie somewhere during the month of August and then back for the 2024 Kempenfest where we will keep adding to it.”
Stones said that while the setup of the event will likely never change, the organizers of Kempenfest never rest on their laurels year to year.
“We can’t really get any bigger from a layout point of view, but we do try to make the experience better for the audience every year,” he said.
Stones estimated more than 400 volunteers from different organizations throughout the city help out over the weekend, taking up about 62 shifts.
“The really cool thing is someone may help out Friday night on a shift, but they’ll come down the other days to assist because they just enjoy it so much,” he said. “It's a big event, if the weather co-operates; it's a fun event and we all are looking forward to it.”
In addition to the amount of money spent at the festival, it is estimated that Kempenfest has an economic impact on the local economy of more than $7 million. This estimate is based on the Ministry of Tourism modelling and factors in such things as hotel stays, local restaurant and shopping spending, gas purchases, hotels, etc.
People who have attended Kempenfest in the past know it's also good to have a parking plan.
Kempenfest provides free shuttles servicing the waterfront, as well as park-and-ride locations in the north and south end of Barrie easily accessed from Highway 400 and by Barrie Transit. Shuttles operate on a 15- to 30-minute frequency, depending on traffic. Stops are indicated with a Kempenfest Shuttle sign. Service hours are as follows: Friday from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Monday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
For more information on the Kempenfest shuttle service and the event itself, head to the website by clicking here.
