West Side Cinco de Mayo festival making a comeback

Jake Spitzack Staff Writer

The West Side took a hard hit in 2020 when the pandemic forced the cancellation of the neighborhood’s wildly popular Cinco de Mayo festival. At that time, the St. Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation, which had organized the celebration since 2009, indicated it would be back, but that never happened under their leadership. Last fall, members of the West Side Boosters Club saw the writing on the wall and began planning to resurrect the event, albeit on a much smaller scale. The Foundation declined to say why it dropped the event.

To the relief of many, the cherished Cinco de Mayo Fiesta will return this year 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday, May 6, at Parque Castillo, 149 Cesar Chavez St. The event will feature bands, a lowrider show, softball tournament, 40 food and vendor booths, and more. Proceeds will go toward youth sports programs sponsored by the Boosters Club.

“It’s exciting to be able to do this and to know it’s run by the community,” said club president Bob Cruz. “We’ve had a lot of people reach out to do this…. A lot of vendors are people who grew up in this community. We’re giving them an opportunity to thrive, and giving the community a chance to come out and have a good, safe time.”

Music will be presented all day. The line-up is: Kalpuli Huitzillin, 10 a.m.; REGAL and Camila 11 a.m.; Los Alegres Bailadores, noon; Mariachi Lucero 1 p.m.; Chico Chávez Orchestra 2 p.m.; Shayla Carbajal, 3 p.m.; Tequila 2023, 4 p.m. Several food trucks will be on site throughout the day. Bags and balls will fly at 10 a.m. when the first round of the adult softball and cornhole tournaments kick off.

A lowrider show featuring 30-40 vehicles also kicks off at 10 a.m. Some of the vehicles will participate in a hydraulic bounce competition. Awards will be given in several categories.

Portions of State Street and South Clinton Avenue will be closed off for the event and St. Paul police officers will provide security. Local restaurants will also host specials and entertainment throughout the weekend.

“Please come out and celebrate with our community,” said Cruz. “Now it’s [the event] not so big. We’re trying to bring it back to the West Side. Come celebrate our culture.” He said the Boosters will organize the event again next year if they can get enough sponsors. As of press time they had 18 sponsors this year.

“The community is pretty psyched about getting it back,” said West Sider Debby Luna, who has helped organize events for the fiesta in the past. “Hopefully each year we’ll get a little bigger. A parade is probably going to be the first thing they [the Club] will shoot for having next year. Not to the caliber it was, but some kind of little parade… If a lot of people want it to happen, then hopefully more people will jump on board to help make it happen.”

The Cinco de Mayo fes- tival was first organized in 1985 by the former Concord Street Business Association (later renamed the Riverview Economic Development Association). It grew from a small community festival to a regional two-day event that attracted more than

100,000 people. After becoming too much for the small nonprofit to handle, the St. Paul Festival and Heritage Foundation took over its management and made it a one-day event. The celebration formerly took place along Cesar Chavez

Street between Wabasha and South Robert Street, and featured a colorful parade, lowrider show, jalapeno eating contest, food and musical entertainment. For more information on this year’s celebration, visit westsideboosters.com/cincodemayo.

Dog Friends

My husband, Peter, is trying to impress a local collie. Peter knows better than this. He had a collie for many years. Collies are not easily impressed. They have their own priorities and their own agenda and if it happens to coincide with yours, you can pretend they did something on your behalf – but you’d be lying to yourself.

The current object of Peter’s affection is named Lassero and lives on a road Peter takes every day on his hike. Peter met the collie one day when the dog was sticking his head through the curtains of its owner’s house. Peter learned his name from the collie’s owner and went on to

Carrie Classon CarrieClasson.com

assume that he and the collie would be fast friends. From then on, as Peter walked by, he called out, “Lassero!” but the collie ignored him.

Peter decided to bring treats. He brought a cookie and put it on the windowsill. The collie did not come. On the way home, Peter checked the windowsill. The cookie was gone. Peter did this for several days running.

“Maybe Lassero’s owner is finding the cookies,” I said. “Maybe he is throwing them away!” Peter was not convinced.

Then one day, Lassero was at the open window. Peter offered him a cookie. Lassero ignored it. He put it down on the sill. The pooch poked it with his nose. He eventually ate it but did not seem excited.

“I don’t think Lassero likes cookies,” Peter concluded. The next day, he went out and bought corn chips.

“If he didn’t like cookies, he’s not going to like corn chips!” I said. “He’s waiting for organic sun-dried beef chips.” Peter looked as if he was considering this.

Cinco de Mayo 5k Family Run returns May 6

The 2023 Cinco de Mayo

5k Family Run will be held 3:45-4:45 p.m., Saturday, May 6, at Joseph’s Grill, 140 Wabasha St. Hosting the event for the 21st year is the Minnesota National

Latino Peace Officers Association, Minnesota State Chapter. Participants will either travel a 3.1-mile scenic route along Harriet Island or choose a virtual option and run anywhere, anytime. Registration is $40 before April 30, $45 before May 5 and $50 the day of the race. Register at andersonraces. enmotive.com.

“I could take chicken,” he said.

“You can’t take chicken on your hike!” I figured there wasn’t much Peter wouldn’t do to capture this dog’s affection.

Then he had an idea. “Popcorn! Dogs love popcorn even more than beef!” He packaged up some popcorn and put it in his backpack. “Lassero!” he called. The dog didn’t answer. Peter left popcorn on the windowsill. On his way back, he checked. The popcorn was still there but one piece had been moved. It was now in tiny, wet pieces. Apparently, Lassero didn’t like popcorn either.

Some dogs will do anything for affection. Some will give you affection once they figure you’ve earned it. And some are always going to play hard to get. I had a feeling that Lassero might not be in the market for more friends, but I didn’t want to break this to Peter.

Even though it sounds funny, it’s a little sad. I’ve been ignored and ghosted by folks I thought were my friends. I realized – a little too late – they were not actually my friends. They already had friends, and I wasn’t one of them. It doesn’t matter if it’s a dog or a person. The realization still hurts.

“You have lots of dog friends,” I reminded my husband. There’s Reacher, who he calls the “Reacher Creature,” a giant canine that jumps up in delight when he sees Peter. There’s Bucky, who has very short legs and lies down on the sidewalk when Peter talks too long with Bucky’s owner. There are several tiny dogs who walk on his route every day and bark in excitement every time Peter goes by. And somewhere, just behind the curtains of his home, is Lassero, ignoring Peter every day. doesn’t know what he’s

I told Peter. And he doesn’t. Till next time.

Fitzgerald Theatre

10 E. Exchange St. St. Paul

651-370-2953 first-avenue.com

The New Pornographers, 8 p.m., Wednesday, May 3. Tickets start at $35. An Evening of Bharatanatyam by Alarmel Valli, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, May 6. $27.50.

Minnesota

History Center

345 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651-259-3000 mnhs.org

Our Home: Native Minnesota includes historic and contemporary photographs, maps and artifacts. Visitors learn how Minnesota’s native communities have retained cultural practices, teachings and values.

Other exhibits include Minnesota’s Greatest Generation, Then Now Wow,

History Theatre

30 E. 10th St. St. Paul 651-292-4323

Historytheatre.com

“The Defeat of Jesse James” is presented April 29-May 28. Set in 1876, this mix of honky-tonk cabaret and wild west show reenacts the infamous outlaw’s rise and fall, with a grand finale set in Northfield, Minn. Tickets start at $48 for adults.

Landmark Center

75 5th St. W. St. Paul 651-292-3225 landmarkcenter.org

St. Paul Civic Symphony’s Annual Mother’s Day Concert, 1-3 p.m., Sunday, May 14. Free.

MN Children’s Museum

10 7th St. W. St. Paul 651-225-6000 parodies of the Mona Lisa, and replace Mona Lisa’s face with your own.

Emotions at Play with Pixar’s Inside Out is the new featured exhibit May 20-September 3. Learn about emotions, memory and imagination through interactive and digital experiences.

The Backyard: The Mud Zone is a new exhibit opening in an outdoor space in late May. Mix dirt and water to create different types of mud, mix up a gourmet muddy meal in the mud kitchen, and use catapults and air cannons to launch mud at various targets.

Other exhibits and activities include The Scramble, The Studio, Creativity Jam, Sprouts, Our World, Forces at Play, Shipwreck Adventures and Imaginopolis.

The museum is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Tues.-Fri., 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturdays, and 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sundays. Tickets are $14.95. Admis-

Kickoff to Summer at the Fair returns May 25-28. The event includes food, brews, music, shopping, free parking and family fun at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Tickets are $12.50 in advance online; children age 4 and under are free. Save $3 when you buy in advance. For more information, visit mnstatefair.org/kickoff-to-summer.

MN Museum of American Art

350 Robert St. N. St. Paul 651-797-2571 mmaa.org

“Im/perfect Slumbers” is on display through August 20, in the M’s window galleries and skyway tions captures the historical and contemporary state of sleeping and being in bed.

“Colonial Traumas” is an installation in Skyway 28 over Wabasha Street at 4th Street in downtown St. Paul. Created by Luis Fitch, the mural features colorful, vinyl cut-out skulls that way windows above Robert Street. Created by Jose Dominguez, it features colorful vinyl creatures that “play” hide and seek with passerby.

Ordway Center

345 Washington St. St. Paul

S ample St. Paul

ents “Don Giovanni,” May 6, 11, 13-14, 18 and 2021. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m., Sundays.

The Schubert Club presents a free outdoor stream concert of The KannehMasons at 6 p.m., Sunday, May 7, at Rice Park.

Singing the World Awake, 7:30 p.m., Friday, May 12. Tickets start at $25. No One Stands Alone: a community celebration of youth music, 2 p.m., Sunday, May 21. Free.

Happy Hour Concert: Mozart’s Paris Symphony with Jonathan Cohen, 6 p.m., Thursday, May 25. $20.

Express Concert: Mozart’s Paris Symphony with Jonathan Cohen, 8 p.m., May 26-27. Tickets start at $12.

RiverCentre

175 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651- 265-4800 rivercentre.org

Fraser Festival, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, May 20. This sensory-friendly festival supports autism programs and services, and features face painting, a virtual reality activity, carnival games, silent disco and more. Food vendors will be present. Free.

Minnesota Bridal and Wedding Expo , 12:30-5 p.m., Sunday, May 21. Free tickets can be found online. Tickets are $10 at the door.

Schubert Club

302 Landmark Center 75 W. 5th St. St. Paul 651-292-3268 schubert.org

Museum Mini: Christian Adeti, 10:30 a.m., Monday, May 1, on the Schubert club website. Learn about the djembe – a West African instrument – in this free, 15-minute interactive session.

140th Anniversary Celebration Concert by the Kanneh-Masons, 3 p.m., May 7, at the Ordway Music Theatre. Tickets start at $36.

Spotlight On: Patricia Hampl – “Writing My Way into Music,” 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, May 16, at Summit Beer Hall. $33.

Courtroom Concerts are held at noon on Thursdays at the Landmark Center. All are free. Upcoming concerts include Isles Ensemble, May 4, and Clara Osowski (mezzo soprano), Casey Rafn (piano) and Steve Staruch (tenor), May 11.

Science Museum of Minnesota

120 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651-221-9444 smm.org

Exquisite Creatures is on display through September

4. Explore the planet’s biodiversity by viewing preserved animal specimens arranged in intricate patterns.

Community Curators is a temporary exhibit on display through June. Each month, community artists, educators and organizers interpret items from museum collections alongside their own work. It also features conversations with curators about the selected objects and their meaning to their cultural community.

Artist at Pine Needle Gallery is a temporary exhibit featuring work from a variety of artists at the Pine Needles cabin on the St. Croix Watershed Research Station property.

Omnitheater films –“Born to be Wild,” through June 10. Join scientists who are rescuing and raising orphaned orangutans and elephants throughout Kenya and Borneo.

“Wings Over Water,” through September 4. Follow the migrations of winged creatures as they return home to raise the next generation of waterfowl.

Stellar Tours Live Digital Telescope Show, Wed.Sun. at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Choose your own space adventure and experience the Omnitheater’s new Digistar 7 projection system. Omnitheater tickets are $9.95. Free for children ages 3 and under.

Museum tickets range from $9.95-$34.90, with discounts available for those with limited incomes.

Xcel Center

199 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651-726-8240 xcelenergycenter.com

Blink-182 , 7:30 p.m., Thursday, May 4. Tickets start at $115.50.

93X Twin City Takeover starring Disturbed, 6:30 p.m., Saturday, May 6. Tickets start at $35.

Shania Twain, 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 17. Tickets start at $258.

Janet Jackson , 8 p.m., Tuesday, May 30. Tickets start at $25.95.