COSTA MESA : Lion’s 50th Annual Fish Fry Opens Today

The city’s 50th Annual Fish Fry, the Costa Mesa-Newport Harbor Lion’s Club’s three-day fund-raiser, opens today.

Event organizers said they expect carnival rides and sales of fish dinners to bring in $80,000 for community groups such as the Costa Mesa Little League, the Boys and Girls Club and the UC Irvine Organ and Tissue Bank.

Some participants expressed concern, though, that the event may draw less of a crowd this year because it will not include a parade.

“I am really upset,” said Betty Jean Beecher of the Costa Mesa Historical Society. The parade, she said, has always been a big part of the weekend. Like other groups that are beneficiaries of fry funds, Beecher said, she is worried that fewer people will show up.

Les Miller, a 53-year member of the Lion’s Club and unofficial historian of the event, said of the parade cancellation, “We are getting the dickens for it.”

There was simply no option, though, he said. The Lion’s Club ran short of money for what in previous years had been a two-hour spectacle with entries including equestrian units, military bands and antique cars.

In past years, Costa Mesa has provided parade security, including police, for free. Because of budget constraints, however, the city could not do so this year.

Without that assistance, said Lion’s Club President Bob Dugan, the price of the parade would have been nearly $15,000--money that would have been deducted from the amount the civic group raised for charity.

The Fish Fry, in Lions Park at 18th Street and Newport Boulevard, will include a baby beauty contest, band concerts and the Miss Costa Mesa pageant. Hours are 5:30 to 9 p.m. today, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday.