Power outage, heat don't dampen Palatine fest

A minor power outage and heat did not stop a crowd of more than 40,000 from attending last weekend's Palatine Hometown Fest.

The five-day Fourth of July celebration was put on by the Palatine Jaycees and featured a carnival, fireworks and multiple entertainment acts. Though last Saturday's heat wave caused fewer people to attend than the other days, the festival saw steady attendance throughout, officials said.

Behind the work of 30 Jaycees and 170 volunteers, the festival had a fair amount of attendees in comparison to previous years, said Adam Anderson, co-chair of the festival.

On Saturday, however, the festival suffered a power outage and had to quickly switch to backup generators to operate the food tents.

“The line had blown to the food tent,” Anderson said. “But ComEd came out and we were back up running by 8 p.m.”

The loss of power went virtually unnoticed by the fest goers, Anderson said.

Though it is still too early to estimate how much the fair made in profits, Anderson said the Jaycees usually give $25,000 to local community organizations once they pay the bills.

“All the money we make goes back to the community,” he said. Last year's funds were donated to 17 local organizations.

Bill Pohlman, spokesman for the Palatine Jaycees, said he is proud Palatine continues to host a traditional Independence Day celebration while other towns have canceled or cut back their festivals.

“A lot of communities have to cut back because of the economy and we're just happy that we can provide a fun Fourth of July for Palatine,” he said.