CAR SHOWS, CONCERTS RETURNING TO EL CAJON
Popular events will resume with safety measures in place
After more than a year of COVID-19 protocols that prevented El Cajon from holding city-sponsored events, the City Council and city staff are trying to bring back some semblance of normalcy.
The city last week was the first jurisdiction in East County to hold an in-person City Council meeting inside council chambers.
And during the meeting, at which council members, staff and those in attendance wore face masks, City Manager Graham Mitchell got direction from the council that it wants staff to bring back two popular weekly events held downtown.
As the City Council looks to provide opportunities to promote community involvement and get people out of their houses and safely interacting again, subject to conditions, the city plans on holding an abbreviated Dinner and a Concert series this summer as well as bring back its well-attended Cajon Classic Cruise car show.
The Downtown El Cajon Business Partners group, the city’s downtown property and business improvement district, had asked the City Council to approve both events.
Acknowledging that no public special events can take place until El Cajon receives guidance from the county, the council approved getting a head start in the planning process for both events.
Dinner and a Concert is a multiweek, free concert series that typically draws more than 700 attendees every week. This year’s shows are planned to run from 6 to 8 p.m. on Fridays from July 2 through Oct. 29 at Prescott Promenade.
The car shows are a bigger draw than the concert series, according to the Downtown El Cajon Business Partners, and typically draw about 2,000 attendees every week.
The weekly shows are tentatively planned for 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays, May 5 through Oct. 27 along Main Street near City Hall and Prescott Promenade.