Alberta Main Street will host The 15th Annual Alberta Street Fair Saturday, August 11, 2012. The Alberta Street Fair, one of Portland’s most beloved neighborhood street festivals, features a day of eclectic activities celebrating the diversity and uniqueness that is Only on Alberta, including:

• Shopping in Alberta’s unique local businesses and at 300 vendors lining NE Alberta Street between NE 10th & 30th Avenues (11AM to 7PM).
• Eating at one of Alberta Street’s well-known eateries, food carts, or Street Fair vendors.
• Dancing at one of the three music stages located at NE 11th, 21st, & 29th Avenues.
• Family fun including the Children’s Parade and vibrant, creative activity filled Children’s Corner.
• Toasting summer in the Beer Garden at NE 11th Avenue (11AM to 9:30PM) or at Txakparti 2012 at NE 29th Avenue.

Alberta Street Fair loves kids!

Kicking off this year’s event is the second annual children’s parade starting at 11AM at NE 15th Avenue and ending at the Center Stage at NE 21st Avenue where kid-friendly performances await the costume-clad kids. Families interested in participating in the parade should gather at 10:30AM in the Alberta Co-op parking lot at NE 15th Avenue.

Enjoy more family fun in the PDX Kids Calendar hosted Children’s Corner (at NE 18th Avenue) full of crafty fun and entertainment.

Here’s the lineup:

We will have creative activities with:
Mimosa Studios (all day) – free tile painting
SCRAP (11-2) – SCRAP is all about creative reuse! Join us to make your own all weather wind sock from SCRAP materials!
KC Puppetree (2-7) – Join KC Puppetree and make recycled bug puppets! Learn how to make simple recycled puppets that you can take home and hopefully get inspired to make more! There will also be KC Puppetree’s fabulous tub-o-puppets. Discover various styles of easy home-made puppets and bring them to life.

12:30 MoveYoga
Yoginis will swim like fish, float like sea otters, and dive like whales in this free kids yoga class! We’ll practice mindfulness, flexibility, and strength while taking an imaginative journey to the ocean.

1:00 Story-time and Balloons with Olive Rootbeer and Dingo
Toddlers get ready to sing to some of your favorite songs, hear a story or two and watch Olive and Dingo create before your eyes, a bit of fun and magic! During story-time we like wiggle, learn, and laugh with our families and friends so bring ‘em along!

1:30 Zenana Spa and Wellness Center
Kids will stretch their bodies and minds while learning about emotional regulation and mindfulness in this yoga class. Our young yoginis will take an imaginative journey to a fun location, such as the zoo, the ocean, or a castle, and what we encounter along the way will become a yoga pose!

2:00 Baby Sensory
Bring your little one – from newborn to 13 months – for a variety of short, fun sensory activities including an intro to baby massage, songs and sign language, and exposure to lots of fun textures and unique visual exercises. Join us for a fun and purposeful way to engage your baby in new experiences and stimulate all of their senses!

2:30 The Merry Kitchen
Julie Merry of the Merry Kitchen will be making wraps with kids of all ages.  Stop by and see what’s in season to create your own delicious wrap!

3:00 Capoeira Ijexá Portland
We will be teaching simple movements of capoeira, including some attacks, escapes, and dance movements, as well as demonstrating a capoeira”roda” with live music and friendly “sparring” games and acrobatics.

3:30 Kids Junk Orchestra
Kids Junk Orchestra brings its innovative drumming workshops for children to the street. Join us for a 30 minute bucket drumming jam session led by our resident drumming leader Dennis Dove. We will be doing simple drills, experimenting with different “junk” instruments and having a good time being creative and loud.

4:00 Sound Roots School of Music
Sample one of Sound Roots many drop-in classes for all aspiring musicians.  This workshop will show off some basics of songwriting, rhythm, singing and basic stringed instruments.  Come get your groove on with us!

4:30 MEGA Sports Camp
Activity description: Come play games and learn some new skills with the MEGA Sports Camp coaches.  Includes basketball, soccer, and cheer!

In addition, Art on Alberta will be hosting kids art activities near 22nd Avenue (look for Red Rover).

New this year!

• cork • a bottle shop will host Txakparti 2012 to benefit Alberta Main Street and The Urban Farm Collective. Txakparti 2012 will feature txakoli, a delicious, refreshing Basque wine paired with tapas and pintxos from Aviary, Bar Lolo, Ned Ludd, Tabla, Toro Bravo, and Xocolatl de David. You will find Txakparti 2012 at NE 29th Avenue. Tickets ($25 in advance/$30 at the door) are on sale now at cork (2901 NE Alberta) and online at corkwineshop.com.
• UNEEK will host a 3V3 Street Soccer Tournament between NE 10th & 11th Avenues. No pristine fields. No keepers. No stoppage time. Just a ball, a goal, and 20 minutes to bring your best.

Come by bike!

Alberta Street Fair provides over one hundred places for you to park! Bike parking lots can be found near 11th, 22nd, and 29th Avenues!

Volunteers are still needed to make sure the day is a smashing success!

In addition to knowing you are helping put on a great community event, you get a super cool t-shirt, a beer ticket (if you are over 21 of course!) and an invitation to our much anticipated volunteer appreciation party in September. You can sign up to volunteer at albertamainst.org/street-fair/volunteers/.

Alberta Street Fair is a free community event with a $2 suggested donation to support building a vibrant and healthy Alberta Street. Donations will be accepted at the info booth (1722 NE Alberta), selected retailers, and the beer garden. Held annually on the second Saturday in August, the Alberta Street Fair draws more than 15,000 people to shop, eat, drink, mingle, groove, and enjoy all manners of creative expression.

More information about all things Street Fair can be found at albertamainst.org.

Alberta Main Street, a Portland Main Street program, advances efforts to develop Alberta Street as a vibrant, creative, and sustainable commercial district serving residents and visitors to the community.