About the Fair

The Avenues Street Fair is one of Utah’s premiere community celebrations. Held annually since the 1970’s on the second Saturday of September, this is an event planned and hosted by the Greater Avenues Community Council (GACC) to celebrate our unique, eclectic and historical community.

ORIGINS & HISTORY

The Avenues Street Fair has its origins in the mid-1970’s when a group of homeowners formed the Avenues Restoration Association and began holding house tours, antique sales, tool borrowing events and parties on nearby lawns. The first street fair t-shirt depicted “God’s finger” (a la Michelangelo) touching the Avenues. We select a local artist each year to create a new theme art.

Some of our past theme art/tshirt images are shown below.

 Please email streetfair@slc-avenues.org if you can add any past street fair tshirt designs not shown above.

As the Fair expanded, government agencies, local nonprofits and vendors were added and live bands provided the entertainment. Police closed off the streets, neighbors pitched in their garbage cans and electricity, local churches offered their restrooms and local markets and cafes offered great deals on party trays and drinks. These early events continued annually, and grew into the Avenues Street Fair we know today.

PLANNING

Planning for the Fair begins months before, usually each March. A committee of community volunteers is formed and we start to plan the event. A site is selected, the residents along the street are contacted, numerous permits are obtained from the City and County; booth applications are opened, a featured artist is selected, people’s art is solicited, the children’s parade is planned, the children’s activity area is developed, recycle and trash bins, water and porta-potties and street signs are ordered; bands are solicited to play music, advertising is created and the fair happens always on the second Saturday of September!  2025 will be our 50th Anniversary Avenues Street Fair! 

The Street Fair is an all-volunteer event. The committee consists of anyone with an interest in having a fun time putting together a community celebration. Meetings to organize the event are held beginning in March. All the GACC Board members pitch in and help in many ways, but numerous volunteers come on the day of the Fair for one or several hours to help set up, take down or run a booth for the GACC.

There is always a lot to do to plan an event of this size.  We are open for new volunteers beginning next March as we plan the 2025 50th Anniversary Avenues Street Fair. To receive planning meeting notices or to ask about volunteering, email streetfair@slc-avenues.org.

Entertainment

The Fair features local bands and solo performers. We rent a stage and hire a professional sound engineer. We also have one or more busker stations for acoustic, unplugged performers.  See our list of 2024 entertainers HERE

Vendors 

The Fair has space for approximately 200 selling vendors and approximately 20 food and drink vendors. We begin accepting vendor applications each April. This year we received over 350 applications. We select those vendors who will give our event the community and family friendly look and feel that represents the Avenues community.  We select locally made, hand made arts and crafts. We reserve spaces for a number of local nonprofit organizations who provide valuable information to the public about their mission. We reserve spaces for City government departments, and for our generous sponsors.  We purposely do not select multi-level marketing, mass produced, imported or commercially produced items. We do not select financial advisors or insurance agents. See our Vendor Information Page HERE

People’s Art Gallery

Our Fair features an all-day open-air art gallery, and we invite artists of all ages living in the Avenues to enter their art work. We encourage entries of paintings, drawings, photography, jewelry and three-dimensional art. The art is on display all day during the Fair and all Fair attendees vote throughout the day for their favorite. The artwork with the most votes will receive the People’s Choice Award. In addition professional judges will award first, second and third place prizes in the following five categories: Child Artist, age 9 or under, Youth Artist, age 10-14, Young Adult Artist, age 15-18, Adult Amateur Artist, Adult Professional. See more about the People’s Art Gallery, and the 2024 winners HERE