City Expo Draws a Downtown Crowd

If you were a motorist unaware of what was happening in downtown Attleboro Sunday afternoon, you may have been alarmed by the sight of police cars, traffic barricades, emergency vehicles and plumes of smoke emanating from the center of Attleboro. It was really nothing to be worried about, of course, as the smoke was coming from the many outdoor cooking stations set up at the third annual Expo Of The Senses held in the temporarily traffic-free center.  

With the roads closed to cars, downtown Attleboro was transformed into a pedestrian wonderland filled with street vendors, artists, a rock-climbing wall and many booths sponsored by local businesses and restaurants. Joe Hall and Valeri Nihill of the Friends of Capron Park Zoo manned a booth with hopes of spreading awareness of  their organization and promoting their upcoming September fundraiser.

"We're always recruiting new board members," Nihill said.  It was their first time participating in The Expo and Nihill was extremely enthusiastic. "I absolutely love  it ... We need more events like this so people can socialize locally," she said.

Food choices were plentiful, with many area restaurants serving up their specialties. Giuseppe Scorpio, one of the owners of Scorpios Restaurant, said this was his third year taking part in The Expo. "We had a booth here the last couple of years while our restaurant was still in the construction phase," Scorpio said.  "Of course it's a lot easier for us now with our booth located just in front of our door!" he said. Scorpio gave credit to Mayor Kevin Dumas, citing The Expo as one of his best ideas.

When asked approximately how much food he'd go through, Scorpio said he had about 30 pounds of sausage and a couple hundred hot dogs ready. "The crowd really started arriving early and by 11:30 am I had people ready to start ordering lunch," he said.

The expo featured a number of artist demonstrations, with an especially large crowd gathering near City Hall to watch the sidewalk artists at work. Kerry St. Pierre of the Attleboro Art Museum figured she'd be putting about seven hours of work into her sidewalk portrait. Dave LaFerriere was laboring diligently on "American Gothic," while Alice King was working her sidewalk magic on Marc Chagall's "Child With Dove." 

There was also a "live art" demonstration by TEN31Productions of Pawtucket. They feature "Living Art for Special Occasions." Performing at the expo Allison Crews as a living statue of the "Wine Goddess." Owner Eric Auger said that this was his third year doing the expo. "We perform worldwide at such events as weddings, festivals, and store openings," he said. Many in the crowd were seen doing a double-take, not quite sure if they might have seen the statue move.  

Live music filled the air, with the Larson Senior Center Theatre Group playing to an appreciative audience on the steps of the old Post Office. "This is our first time at the expo," said co-director Marion Aspinall. "We had about nine members of the group performing today out of about 40," she said

Dot Campbell, a first-time Expo-goer, summed it up nicely: "This was my first time here ... I wanted to come down and see what it was all about and I can tell you right now that I'll definitely be coming back next year."