COLORADO SPRINGS — Territory Days is returning to Colorado Springs this weekend for the first time since 2019. It's a celebration in Old Colorado City honoring the spirit of Colorado's first territorial capital.
The event, on Colorado Ave., has been Colorado’s largest street fair for more than 45 years, but it wasn’t held the past two years because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However organizers say it’s back, bigger and better this weekend. On Friday, many businesses were getting ready for the large crowds.
“We'll have some large crowds, so I do, i have more hands on deck here,” said Megan Morris, the owner of Meraki Springs, a handcraft jewelry store in Old Colorado City. “We have over 50 artists in the shop that handmade everything in our shop, and I’ll have a couple of my artists in here demonstrating their work.”
Morris opened the shop in March of last year, so this is the first Territory Days, she’ll be celebrating as a business owner.
“I’m excited about it. I think it's going to great opportunity for people that maybe don't normally come to Old Colorado City,” said Morris.
On the same block is Alchemy, an Irish pub that opened eight years ago. They celebrated Territory Days in 2019, and prior.
“It gets more businesses out there. a lot of foot traffic, so we see a lot of people come in really quick and especially people if they've never been here,” said Kevin Von Arx, a bartender at the pub.
From Saturday to Monday, there will be hundreds of vendors, with handcrafted items and jewelry from around the world. There will also be live music from 25 bands on three stages.
Staff at businesses are also expecting some of the biggest crowds they’ve seen since 2019.
“There's a lot of food vendors and small businesses that put stuff out on the street that people normally wouldn't get to enjoy or know about,” said Von Arx. “I think since it hasn't been a thing in the past 2 years, more people are going to come out and enjoy it especially if the weather is nice.”
The 3-day event is happening Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is free.
The Colorado Springs Police department will also have officers at the event for security and traffic control points. The department has been a partner for the event for many years prior to it closing for COVID.
Also, your car will get towed if parking inside a non-permitted area. Free shuttles to and from Coronado High School are being provided for the event.
