FLEISCHMANNS — With cool mornings beginning to hint at autumn, Fleischmanns made the most of one of summer's final holiday weekends Sunday as Main Street filled with music, food, art, yard sales and neighbors for the village's annual Labor Day Street Festival.
Before noon, vendors hurried through last-minute preparations while residents arranged the traditional assortment of yard-sale discoveries along Main Street. Clothing racks stood beside antique furniture, vinyl records, pewter mugs, artwork and the miscellaneous treasures that give the Fleischmanns festival much of its informal charm.
Food was equally abundant. Former Goatie Whites owners returned with a large food trailer serving familiar favorites, while the Phoenicia Diner team stayed busy throughout the day. Armando and Juve's El Sazón Cósmico drew a steady line for Mexican food, with Armando also sharing encouraging news about the restaurant planned for the Commons Building in Margaretville. Renovations are progressing toward a hoped-for Oct. 1 opening.
At the western end of the festival, Heidi Stonier put finishing touches on a children's play area outside Arts Inn, greeting friends from the lawn in a yellow flowered apron. Nearby, artist Gloria Zola spent the afternoon sketching portraits and caricatures in front of the Victorian building.
For Arts Inn's Randy Leer, one of several festival organizers, seeing everything finally come together was part of the satisfaction. Leer said he worked with Joe and Rebecca from the Print House, Lindsay from Formerly and a group of volunteers to organize the event. With many vendors waiting until late to commit, there had been moments of uncertainty. “We always don't think it's going to happen, and then it happens,” Leer said. “And it's amazing.”
Music became the festival's soundtrack from one end of the village to the other. Sue's Garage opened with classic rock and oldies near the municipal parking lot pavilion, sending music in both directions along Main Street.
In the Print House parking lot, Joe Colwell performed solo vocals and guitar for festivalgoers. Colwell has become an increasingly familiar performer around the region during the past several years, building both an audience and a growing catalog of original music. Organizer Rebecca Devito appeared to have little opportunity to stop during the day as activity around the Print House remained steady.
Art was woven naturally into the festivities as well. Melissa Murray, currently the featured artist at 1053 Gallery, walked Main Street with her family during the festival. Her exhibition, “Light Lives as an Animal,” continues through Sept. 16 and draws from her relationship with the Catskills landscape, exploring the uncertain boundaries between wildlife, darkness, light and the natural world.
Leer said the festival's combination of music, art and local businesses is exactly what organizers hoped to create. “It's great for Fleischmanns, and it's great for the whole area, if you ask me,” he said. “The vendors are doing good. For the most part, these are all local vendors.”
Another familiar festival landmark waited toward the eastern end of Main Street, where Doolittle's and Harold Kuhn's distinctive vintage ice cream vehicle once again became a natural gathering point.
The festival also offered reminders of how interconnected these small mountain communities can be. Wendy Buerge, who had spent the previous evening helping welcome more than 100 people to the revived Dry Brook Community Center, was back out Sunday enjoying Fleischmanns and proudly showing off a new jacket discovered at Formerly.
Arts Inn provided one of the day's final gathering places. A film created by Alan Powell documenting the summer Fairgrounds event played on a loop outside, preserving performances from that earlier community celebration.
As afternoon moved toward evening, passing clouds threatened rain but never disrupted the festivities. Lali and the Pops closed the musical program outside Arts Inn, playing for a crowd familiar with the band's frequent appearances at community gatherings throughout the region.
After six hours of music, conversations, food and discoveries along Main Street, the day seemed to pass remarkably quickly.
Perhaps Leer summed up the festival best after watching months of uncertainty turn into a crowded Main Street.
“It's been a success,” he said, before adding with a laugh, “And I'm exhausted.”
