Fourth Avenue fair mirrors Tucson’s melting pot

Tucson’s Fourth Avenue is a hallmark of the region, where history and the contemporary mingle.

The district’s street fairs show locals and tourists Tucson’s personality, according to Casey Anderson, Fourth Avenue Merchants Association’s chief operating officer and marketing director.

“Fourth Avenue is still one of the most unique, eclectic areas of our town,” Anderson said. “It’s just one big melting pot of everything that happens in our community. And we’re celebrating it all together as one.”

In its 54th year, the Fourth Avenue Spring Street Fair runs from Friday, March 24, to Sunday, March 26, featuring hundreds of vendors and thousands of visitors. From food sellers to artisans and performers, the association supports the community and Southern Arizona as a whole.

“We’re internationally known for our street fair,” Anderson said. “The ability to basically shut down the historic district so we can welcome people all over the world into our community is incredible.”

The Historic Fourth Avenue Business District started as a neighborhood until 1916, when the Fourth Avenue Underpass was completed. Its key placement in central Tucson made it a crucial shopping area for students, neighbors and downtown businesses.

The street fairs began as a way for Fourth Avenue businesses to come together and develop an organic marketing strategy. In 1983, association was established to help grow and maintain the historic district. They added more events to fund the nonprofit, introducing the entrepreneurship of more local artists and businesses to the community.

“A lot of the rules from the first fair actually still apply today,” Anderson noted. “In order to be qualified as an artist, they have to hand make their items. It can only touch three sources to be considered handmade.”

Fourth Avenue was nominated to the National Register of Historic Places. But in 2020, the district and the fairs were hit hard by the pandemic. The association canceled a year’s worth of events, and it was in danger of dissolving.

According to Anderson, the association was forced to take out a small business loan in winter 2021 just to put on the first post-COVID-19 fair.

“The first fair was really scary,” Anderson said. “It takes so many people and companies and so many hands to be able to put this on and do it successfully. But now, we’ve had a full year of fairs.”

With the success of the 2021-2022 season, the association is ready for its next street fair series. The Fourth Avenue Spring Street Fair will host over 400 vendors and line Fourth Avenue with tents and stages to hold them.

Most are local, but the association allows artists from all over the world to apply. If a vendor isn’t chosen, they’re placed on a waitlist prioritizing local businesses.

“We really give preference to our local artists as a community event,” Anderson said. “We limit how many commercial businesses can participate because we really want to honor that entrepreneurial spirit. That’s what Fourth Avenue is made up of.”

Featured this year is the interactive area, which includes Ben’s Bells Pop-up Community Art Studio and a large Eurotramp Trampoline.

Ben’s Bells is a local Tucson nonprofit that allows the public to make ceramic ornaments as symbols of kindness for people to find and take home.

Popularized in California, Eurotramp Trampoline has no weight limit and is used competitively in the Olympics. It will be available for the community to enjoy on Fourth Avenue grounds.

Cumulus Radio helped the association find acts for its two main stages. The station hosted a contest where anyone could be considered to perform. The jury selected a handful of acts and organized their shows on each of the fair’s three days.

“It really didn’t come down to just bands,” Anderson noted. “We have cloggers, belly dancers, magicians and The Hags of Tucson. We chose the performances on each of those days based on which radio station would be out there.”

Friday will be KHYT classics and oldies, followed by KIIM FM country. It wraps on Sunday with The Vibe hip-hop and R&B. The stations will host the new Ram Plumbing Fifth Street Stage

The association celebrates the entire community with more than fairs. With each event’s revenue, the association gives back 25% to 30% to other organizations and community groups. According to Anderson, they also employ a portion of the homeless population to work the fairs.

“The fair does so much for so many,” Anderson said. “It employs people, it gives back to other nonprofits and it brings together the community. You get that whole vibe of a fair while supporting people that make their wares with their bare hands.”

With hundreds of premier vendors, talented performers and local artists, the Fourth Avenue Spring Street Fair emanates the rich culture of Tucson. The association prepares for another fair season full of local entrepreneurial spirit and philanthropy.

From Friday, March 24, to Saturday, March 26, Anderson hopes for full days that bring Tucson’s old and new together.

“Everything you see, touch, taste or hear at the street fair is just a melting pot of everything our community has to offer,” Anderson said. “Everybody has the same idea that they’re out to embrace and celebrate it. It’s something our world needs more of.”

Fourth Avenue Spring Street Fair

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, March 24, to Sunday, March 26

WHERE: Historic Fourth Avenue, Tucson

COST: Free

INFO: fourthavenue.org

This article appears in Mar 23-29, 2023.