New additions planned for Ammon Days
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AMMON — There are exciting new additions to an annual event that the city of Ammon is bringing and there is something for everyone to enjoy.
Ammon Days, a free event, is this weekend and it’s packed with fun activities, including swimming, vendors, food, entertainment, games, prizes, a car show, and more.
New this year is a hot air balloon display called “Ammon Glow” which will kick off Ammon Days weekend. It will be held this Friday evening, from 8:45 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the McCowin Park north field.
“We are super excited about the Friday event. We will have five hot air balloons. They are going to be doing a really cool display,” said Kristina Buchan, Ammon City Clerk. “The balloons light up. They have music and sounds.”
She explained the balloons are attached to the ground. The next day at 7 a.m., the balloons will float away to start the celebration for Ammon Days.
In addition to Friday night, Buchan said the pool manager at Ammon City Swimming Pool decided they are going to allow special access into the pool that night so kids will be able to play in the pool and watch the hot air balloons glow. Space is limited.
The next day on Saturday, Ammon Days will begin officially at 9 a.m. with a flag ceremony. Booths will open at that time. As of Tuesday morning, Buchan said there will be 75 business vendors anywhere from small mom-and-pop shops all the way up to credit unions. There will be a car show which is expected to be larger this year, with at least 75 vintage cars. Last year, there were around 30 cars.
Buchan encourages people to stop by the gazebo in the park on their way in.
“They’ll be handing out goodie bags with little maps and schedules for the day. There’s also a raffle prize drawing at the end of the day if you go to each of the booths and get a stamp from them and turn it back into us,” she said.
The day ends with the raffle drawing at 3:45 p.m. She said prizes are all donated from local businesses, so there’s a big variety. Bikes, gift certificates, and coolers.
She added there will be at least 15 different food vendors that people can choose from at Ammon Days. Compared to last year, there were only about six food vendors.
“This will be the second year that we’ve done the food trucks. Last year, we had the East Idaho Fair Food Tour come, and this year we have expanded it out,” she said.
Food vendors this year include Mexican Crazy Corn, Mama’s Delicious Dishes, Corndog Company of East Idaho, Creamy Daze, MD’s Dinky Donuts, Summer Nights Italian Ice and more.
The event is expected to bring thousands of people this year. Buchan said the city of Ammon estimated that there were 5,000 people that came to the event last year throughout the day. That’s why they have brought a shuttle service that is new this year to help out with parking.
“There’s not a ton of parking in that area, so we partnered with District 93 and they are going to be providing a few of their buses and bus drivers to shuttle people from McCowin Park to Hillcrest High School and the shuttles will be running every 10 to 15 minutes all day long,” she explained.
It will be an exciting year and Buchan is looking forward to the event. She said it’s a chance for people to meet their city officials. The mayor will be there, along with city council members and city employees.
She encourages anyone to come out, especially if they are new to the area.
“It’s such a great opportunity for people to come out and enjoy the local park,” she said. “There’s really not any other event like this that happens in Ammon. If you are interested in meeting new people or finding out about local businesses, Ammon Days is really the best place to do that.”
