UPDATED 3/20/3019: The City of Beacon has since issued a response to our inquiry about the 2019 Cupcake Festival decision. Please see below for that quote from the City Administrator.

K104.7’s annual Cupcake Festival has moved from the Main Streets of Fishkill for a few years, then to Beacon for two years, and now is at the Stormville Airport, which is also known for the Stormville Airport Antique Show and Flea Market. The Cupcake Festival is wildly popular, attracting bakers from all over the state to compete for a chance to be considered at the final judging table to take home a cash prize.

“We were hoping to come back to Beacon this year but given the growing attendance and space/parking constraints, we had to look elsewhere. We’re looking forward to keeping it in the county and growing the festival in new and exciting ways.”

— Zach Higgins, Non-Traditional Revenue Director, Pamal Broadcasting

Attendance to the event has been growing, and possibly grew out of Fishkill, triggering the radio station to consider Beacon. For two years, the festival was hosted in downtown Beacon on Main Street, shutting down the street and leading to an elbow-to-elbow sugared-up experience (parents know how difficult it can be to maneuver children past tables and tables of cupcakes and lemonade).

We reached out to Pamal Broadcasting, the hosts of the event and owners of K104.7, to learn more: “We had met with the City [of Beacon], and after discussing all the particulars, it was in the best interest of both parties to change the location. The two years the festival was in Beacon catapulted this event to the next level and we are very grateful for the city and what it had to offer,” said Zach Higgins, Non-Traditional Revenue Director for Pamal Broadcasting.

“The attendance estimates for this year seemed more than the City could handle in parking and safety constraints. We would love to have them back, but wish them continued success and hope to work with them on other projects in the future.”

— Anthony J. Ruggiero, M.P.A. City Administrator

The City of Beacon’s City Administrator, Anthony Ruggiero, had this to say: “The City had an incredible working relationship with Pamal Broadcasting and their success was our success. However the attendance estimates for this year seemed more than the City could handle in parking and safety constraints. We would love to have them back, but wish them continued success and hope to work with them on other projects in the future.”

How Was The Cupcake Festival In Beacon?

A Little Beacon Blog did a an unscientific economic study of the Cupcake Festival on businesses in town in 2017. Most eateries did extremely well that day, while boutiques reported a mixed experience. One retail store who had been a vocal opponent of the Cupcake Festival in its first year, raved about it the day after the first festival came and went, after the day’s sales came in, calling the day “as good as Christmas," which in retail-sales speak means a very good day.

However, other businesses were not as pleased, including an art gallery owner who found it difficult to keep children away from touchable artwork inside the gallery, and other retail stores who saw lots of lookers, but no buyers. Citizens experienced a deluge of cars parked near their homes, sometimes blocking driveways. To read more about the 2017 cupcake experience, click here. To see pictures from 2018’s cupcakes, click here.

Trash was well-contained for the most part, though residential complaints about overflowing trash cans after most spring/summer weekends with or without events prompted the City to accept the offer from the trash collection company, Royal Carting, to replace the metal trash cans on Main Street, letting go of the two-hole approach for recycling and trash, in favor of a larger hole for all waste.

Now that the recycling market has crashed, and most recycling in this country isn’t getting recycled due to it being dirty (food waste on plastic makes it non-recyclable) or wet (soggy newspapers or cardboard can’t be recycled), this can replacement seems to be containing trash better. A Little Beacon Blog does have an article coming on this, and you can read more about it in the Highlands Current.

Parade-A-Month Keeps Beacon Touchable By Citizens

Beacon is known to have a parade every month from spring to fall, so this is one less event to keep track of on the calendar (well, in town, that is… you could still drive out to Stormville!), but there are new events coming to Beacon at the Riverfront, in addition to the usual annual events and fundraisers that keep the community in Beacon together.

See A Little Beacon Blog’s Events Calendar, Classes For Adults Guide, and Classes For Kids Guide for lots of events you want to plan for. Subscribe to our newsletter to stay in the loop and get emailed about opportunities.

Where Is Stormville, Anyway?

If you need a quick map on where Stormville is, here’s a picture of the map. It’s *that* way! Good luck to any bakers entering the contest, or vendors vending on the big day!