Rain forces Mineola Street Fair’s postponement

The Island Now

With rain threatening to fall on Sunday, the Mineola Chamber of Commerce postponed its annual street fair for the second time ever to this Sunday, Oct. 9.

Though Mineola saw only a light drizzle, street fair planners thought they were better off safe than sorry early Saturday afternoon when forecasts of rain led them to push the event back a week, said the chamber president, Tony Lubrano.

A few craft vendors and one band will miss the rain date, but planners are working hard to get backup merchants and entertainers to replace them, Lubrano said.

“It’s all kind of uncharted territory, so we’ll kind of have to hope for the best at this point,” he said.

On just one other occasion in recent years has the chamber used the rain date for the fair, which is expected to draw hundreds of people and about 30 entertainers to Jericho Turnpike and Willis Avenue, Lubrano said.

Planners are watching the forecast change hourly as Hurricane Matthew travels through the Carribbean and up the East Coast of the U.S., Lubrano said.

Forecasts on Tuesday showed a 70 percent chance of rain for Sunday in Mineola. But Lubrano said planners are hopeful that will change before the weekend, as another rainout would require canceling this year’s fair altogether.

“This weekend, unless it’s pouring rain we’re going forward, because we have nowhere else to go,” Lubrano said.

Some Mineola businesses were disappointed but understood the decision to postpone the fair, Lubrano said.

“They could look out the window on Saturday and see that it was raining,’’ he said.  ‘‘They could look at the weather forecast same as I.” 

If the skies are clear Sunday, Mineola Street Fair attendees can find live entertainment at four venues, crafts, food from local restaurants, inflatable children’s rides and other attractions along Jericho Turnpike between Nassau Boulevard and Mineola Boulevard, and Willis Avenue between Jericho Turnpike and Linden Road.

The fair will run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in its second year on Jericho Turnpike, where the Chamber of Commerce moved it to help it grow.

By Noah Manskar

Share this Article