Largest Free Street Festival 'West Of The Mississippi' Returns To The East Bay

FREMONT, CA — The "largest free street festival west of the Mississippi" is returning to Fremont this weekend, according to city officials and event organizers.

The Fremont Festival of the Arts will be held in Downtown Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Paseo Padre Parkway, Walnut Avenue and Liberty Street will be closed down for the event.

Attracting more than 150,000 people each year, the event brings hundreds of "top-quality" art and craft booths, along with food vendors, along with artisnal food vendors, street performers, rides for kids and live music, according to organizers.

This is the festival's 42nd anniversary, according to organizers. It serves as one of the largest fundraisers for local nonprofits.

Throughout its existence, the festival has raised more than $11 million, according to organizers.

But just how large is the festival? Organizers say more than 18,000 ice cream bars and 13,000 glasses of wine are consumed each year.

"If you lined all the booths and attractions up in a straight line, there’d be almost (four) miles of Festival fun," according to organizers.