OLEAN — Hundreds of kids paraded up and down North Union Street in Halloween costumes on Saturday as The Shops on Union opened their doors for trick-or-treating.
It was another effort by downtown merchants to bring more people to North Union Street shops they may not know about. The trick-or-treating extended to a few shops on West and East State streets.
The young trick-or-treaters started showing up in costume about 11:30. At 1:30, costume judging was held by ther Municipal Building.
Temperatures were in the upper 40s, but rain held off except for a few drops right before costume judging in the square in front of the mural on the Municipal Building.
Ward 4 Alderwoman Sonya McCall, who helped merchants publicize the trick-or-treating offered by the Shops on Union, had an orange table set on the sidewalk. She was dressed as Elsa from Disney’s Frozen. McCall later handed out gifts for best costumes.
Participating shops included: Kaleidoscope, 2 Sweet Desserts, Singer, Christie’s Boutique, Green Acres, Beat City, Rays, Fashion World, The Eatery, A Cut Above, Rick’s Golf World, Paper Factory, Jupiter Cafe, For Craft’s Sake, ASAP (11:30-12:30), Color it Creative, Skin Deep, Olean Wellness Store, For Craft’s Sake. Also, the Jason Clemons Salon on East State Street and Tri County Arts Council and Mandy’s Flowers on West State Street.
Over the summer, shop owners staged several music and art walks where they offered musical entertainment on the sidewalk outside their shops. The trick-or-treat event Saturday was an outgrowth of that.
Phil Gardner wore a shark costume as he stood outside his wife Tammy’s shop, 2 Sweet Desserts on North Union Street, as he invited trick-or-treaters inside for their treats.
“It’s been pretty steady since 11:30,” he said. “I had to go out and get more candy. This is a very good draw for the store which opened in February.”
Both shopkeepers and McCall said the trick-or-treating was a great idea that should become an annual event before Halloween.
