BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — The Bloomsburg Fairgrounds look much different than last week at this time. Many vendors have already left, and many more are packing up their stands.
"Pulling the trailer out last. We were here until 1 a.m. Sunday morning pulling out our other stand down by Gate 5," Tom Ruckle said.
Vendors have two weeks to leave the property after the Bloomsburg Fair, but this year that is proving to be tricky. One of the largest craft shows in the state will be held there this weekend.
"We are moving 350 crafters in and 31 food vendors in. And yes, in the vicinity of 900 people to move out. So yes, it's a task," said Cheri Bissinger, a member of the Columbia-Montour Visitors Bureau.
The Covered Bridge Festival is a four-day event run by the Columbia-Montour Visitors Bureau. It is typically held at Knoebels, but a few months ago, organizers announced the event would be moving to the fairgrounds.
"The entire festival will be happening just like it did at Knoebels, only in a new venue," Bissinger said.
Bissinger tells Newswatch 16 it's been tough putting together such a large event less than a week after the Bloomsburg Fair.
"We knew going into this it was going to be very difficult in the time frames that we have, but we're making it work," Bissinger said.
Bissinger says most vendors agreed to move out their stands in time for the Covered Bridge Festival.
"We knew that not everybody was going to be able to move in the timeframes that we were given to work in, but I can tell you that we've had an enormous response with people being willing to step in and help us out," Bissinger said.
The Covered Bridge Festival runs Thursday through Sunday at the Bloomsburg Fairgrounds.