The Carnival Isn’t All Fun and Games

It takes hundreds of hours of work to coordinate the efforts of five committees and adapt to ever-changing city regulations in order to put on the Days of the Verdugos Carnival and Arts and Crafts Show, which runs today through Sunday at Verdugo Park in Glendale.

So why would real estate broker Phil Hess take up to 10 hours a week from his business and personal life to chair the event?

“It’s a lot of fun. I meet a lot of good people,” he said. “And I enjoy it a lot, pending any mishaps.”

This is the 46th year for the carnival, named after the Verdugo family, who, by the late 1700s, owned most of the land in the area, eventually losing it to Anglo settlers through lawsuits and shaky mortgages in the mid- to late-19th Century.

Hess first chaired the civic festival put on by the Glendale Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1982 and has worked on it in some capacity every year since then.

Planning starts in early March.

“We start setting the dates, trying to figure out what we want to do, our budget,” Hess said.

This includes: publicizing the arts and crafts festival to attract artists; hiring a carnival company; arranging for food and security; and coordinating with the city on its legal requirements.

“It’s quite a bit (of work),” Hess said. “It takes a lot dealing with the different city entities. We try to work it out as smoothly as possible.”

Hess estimates that more than 100 volunteers, from food servers to ticket takers to security guards, will take their posts this afternoon.

Show hours at the park, 1401 N. Verdugo Road., are 4 to 10 p.m. today, 4 p.m. to midnight Friday, 11 a.m. to midnight Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday.

Today, admission is free for those who donate two canned goods. Otherwise, it’s $2, with children under 5 free. Rides and food are extra.