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Festivalgoers May Notice Improvements

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By GEORGE WILKENS

gwilkens@tampatrib.com

Published: February 25, 2009

PLANT CITY - The hundreds of thousands of people who will pass through the Florida Strawberry Festival gates over the next 11 days can expect to find their favorite foods, rides, exhibits and entertainment. Some may note additions and improvements.

For starters, there's a new midway operator for the festival, said Paul Davis, general manager of the event that opens at 10 a.m. Thursday.

Belle City Amusements, a third-generation family business, will provide the rides. "They're not strangers to this place," Davis said. "They've had rides in our event for many years. This is just the first year they're taking over the whole midway."

The Deltona-based company will offer an expanded selection of rides for the festival's Kiddie Corral.

"We've expanded our kiddie rides," moving the most onto paved areas to make it easily accessible with baby strollers. "Now you don't have to take your small children out into the real crowded midway," Davis said.

The Kiddie Corral is at the east end of the festival grounds and most easily accessed through Gate No. 5 at the corner of Lemon and Reynolds streets.

Additionally, the TECO Livestock Arena and CF Industries Ag tents have been moved to the northwest corner of the festival grounds, near the midway. The midway has been redesigned to provide a buffer between the noisier thrill rides and those large tents housing the youth livestock shows and sales.

"The new ride owners really worked hard to work that out, and I think they've done as much as they can to get the real loud rides away from the tent," Davis said.

"There's a lot of new things to see. We have 60 to 70 new vendors, vendors who have not been here before," Davis added.

Strawberry Festival association president Gary Boothe said another improvement this year is the addition of overhead lighting throughout the festival grounds.

The best news is, perhaps, there is no increase in the price of admission - or strawberry shortcake.

"We worked really hard to keep the price the same as it was last year," Davis said, adding that there is much free entertainment scheduled throughout the festival.

Gate admission tickets sell for $8 in advance for ages 13 and older and $4 for ages 6 to 12. Advance tickets are available through today at the festival ticket office or through the end of the festival at participating Sweetbay Supermarkets.

Admission at the gate will be $10 and $5, respectively. Children 5 and younger are admitted free with a paying adult.

Strawberry shortcake tickets purchased at the festival will also cost $3.50, the same as last year.

"For the price of a movie, you can have a full day of entertainment," Davis said.

Davis, his staff and festival volunteers are doing what they can to manage the one variable over which they have no control.

"We're just praying for good weather," Davis said.

Reporter George Wilkens can be reached at (813) 865-4433.

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