Celebrate the Junction at fest

[attach]678[/attach]The Junction Arts Festival is more than just a street party.

It’s a shout-out from a community that they’re here, and have something to offer.

The festival runs Sept. 9–13, with several events taking place along Dundas St. West between Keele St. and Quebec Ave.

“A whole bunch of stuff (is happening),” says festival producer Michael Menegon.

The whole street will have a festival atmosphere, with shops turning into galleries for art exhibitions, concerts on the Friday and Saturday, hands-on activities for kids, street installations, live painting, musical and street performances, an artisan and vendor market, and to top it off, 16 travelling minstrels.

For the first three days, the festivities will only be held at night but the street will be closed during the day on Saturday and Sunday.
Menegon describes the festival as a party for all the people who work and shop in the Junction.

“(We) try to stay original and unique,” he says. “It’s a community event, but its focus is mostly on the arts.”

The festival has run for 17 years, and last year attracted 200, 000 visitors.

Justin Rutledge, who grew up in the Junction and will be headlining the evening concert on Sept. 12, remembers when the festival started out, with only a live jazz band, about 50 people hitting the streets, and “really nothing to speak of”.

Rutledge will be headlining one of the festival’s concerts for the fifth time, and will be joined by Jason Collett from Broken Social Scene, and up and coming band, The Beauties.

Rutledge is proud of his community and how far it has come.

“It’s heartwarming to see the neighbourhood grow to what I knew it could become one day,” Rutledge says. “It has a really vibrant artistic scene.”

Rutledge remembers a time when the Junction was a neighbourhood of crime and drug dealing.

Now he feels the community is finally getting their dues, their payoff for sticking through the bad.

“It’s very encouraging for the neighbourhood,” Rutledge says. “There’s a different vibe going around. It’s very positive.”

For a complete listing of festival events visit [url]www.junctionartsfest.com.[/url]