ARTS & CRAFTS
Vendor parking, for example, used to be along City Beach. That area is now part of the U.S. Highway 95 bypass, and any available parking, says Queen, ought to be used by folks going to City Beach and the fair. “We were fortunate to have great partners in the area who allow us use of their parking lot downtown,” said Queen, “and we shuttle the vendors back-and-forth all weekend. It has added an expense in renting the shuttle service, but we found it the best answer.” Another change has been in food vending, which POAC managed until 2000. That meant lugging in and setting up tables, cook stations and refrigeration, doing all the food prep, service, and cleanup. “Making bean burritos in the hot sun for hours on end was not fun,” said Queen. “We realized we could more efficiently utilize our volunteers in other areas of the fair (and, they would enjoy themselves much more).” Changing food service allowed a wider variety of food and promoted local vendors. Eight available spots are juried just like arts applicants, often highlighting family-run and niche vendors like Azar’s Restaurant Greek and 48
SANDPOINT MAGAZINE
Above: Up to 4,000 visitors stroll through 120 artist booths at the Pend Oreille Arts Council’s Arts & Crafts Fair over the two-day event every August. Photo courtesy of Poac Children create their own arts and crafts, left, while shoppers are invited to try out some wares, such as this flute, above right. Photos by carrie scozzaro
Middle Eastern Cuisine and Roamin’ Pizza Chariot, both from Spokane. In a converted school bus – yellow with aquamarine and fuchsia – Jupiter Jane’s Traveling Café, with locals Laura Calvert Peitz and Maria Corsini, is a big hit, offering gourmet gluten-free and vegan foods. Musical entertainment at the fair has come a long way since the original organ music, although the focus continues to be local. Last year SUMMER 2012
Sandpoint High School brought the Steel Pan Band. Other performers included Monarch Mountain Band, Beth Pederson and Bruce Bishop, and Bridges Home’s Tami and Dave Gunter, whom Queen remembers performing as long as she’s been involved in the fair. Another longtime participant is Bill Klein, who spent 10 years as a POAC board member. Klein, an architect also known for his watercolors, spends the year collecting wood for kids to paint on in the kids’ art area. “That draws them in better than anything else,” says Klein of the popular family attraction that also features face-painting. The kids’ art area is free, as is entry for fairgoers; the only revenue POAC collects is from vendors in the way of booth fees and a nominal application fee. In 1996, POAC’s then-Director Ginny Robideaux reported that about