Pushing 30, Chula Vista’s Lemon Festival evolving

The 28th Annual Lemon Festival will return to Downtown Chula Vista on Saturday, Aug. 16, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., celebrating the city’s citrus legacy with lemon-themed food, live entertainment, family-friendly activities and local vendors.

The event takes place along Third Avenue and highlights Chula Vista’s agricultural history.

“We do this event every year on Third Avenue in downtown Chula Vista to really commemorate the agricultural legacy of Chula Vista as once being the lemon capital of the world,” said Dominic Li Mandri, district manager of the Downtown Chula Vista Association.

New attractions include a Lemon Pie Eating Contest at 2 p.m. on the Zesty Stage and the Best Dressed of the Lemon Fest Contest at 3:30 p.m. on the Juicy Stage. Both contests require online applications.

Live entertainment will take place throughout the day on two main stages, along with a new dance stage on F Street sponsored by Seven Mile Casino. A children’s area called Little Lemons will be located in Memorial Park, featuring interactive activities and a chance to meet Tarty the Lemon.

This year’s presenting sponsor, San Diego Community Power, will debut an interactive“science project” display at Madrona Street and Third Avenue, showing how lemon-powered circuits can generate electricity.

“It’s a great way for kids to both have fun and also learn in the process,” Li Mandri said. “It’s just one way that we kind of incorporate the academic and the education within our program for the Lemon Festival. We thought this was a great novel idea to highlight education within our community, but also do so in a fun way that is interactive and immersive for our young Chula Vistans.”

Vendors will include Il Cannoli Bar, It’s in the Filling, Lemon Drop Pastry Shop and Mariposa Ice Cream, among others. Local artisans such as Chula Vista Living, Julian Naturals, The Little Lemon Stand, The Movement Brand, South Bay Historical Society and Steven A.Wood Photography will offer goods and keepsakes.

“We can still do something that is nostalgic like the Lemon Festival but incorporate new elements each year to keep it fresh and keep people coming back,” Li Mandri said.

More information, including a schedule of entertainment and contest applications, is available at www.downtownchulavista.com/events/lemon-festival.

“I hope that people continue to affiliate and associate with the family friendly events and with this kind of sense of identity togetherness with downtown,” he added.

“We do these events year after year in downtown because we want Chula Vista to take pride in downtown and the historic Third Avenue district.”