Taste of Wayne moving to city
By Ty Johnson
Published in News on April 26, 2012 1:46 PM
One of the United Way of Wayne County's largest fundraisers will be changing venues after five years, as Taste of Wayne organizers have announced the event will be held downtown this year.
For the past half-decade the fundraiser has been held at Wayne Community College, but a United Way spokesperson said that the culinary showcase had to relocate to expand.
"We're hoping to grow the event each year and downtown offers that," Catherine LeChot said. "We feel like moving the event will allow some expansion as well as developing downtown partnerships."
The 2012 Taste of Wayne County will be held on the 200 and 300 block of South Center Street between Chestnut and Pine streets, including Cornerstone Commons.
She said collaboration between the United Way, the city of Goldsboro, Wayne County Chamber of Commerce and Downtown Goldsboro Development Corp. made the decision easy, especially in advance of downtown's signature revitalization project, the Center Street Streetscape project.
"We're just trying to be supportive of downtown as well," she said. "We just are excited about the possibilities that's going to bring Wayne County as a whole."
Mrs. LeChot said there was no problem with the Wayne Community College site, but that the move was in anticipation of growth.
"The college has been great for us. We're just looking ahead to the future," she said. "It would allow for more restaurants and vendors to come than we would have at the college. We are hoping to get some new restaurants next year."
Mrs. LeChot said that the 2011 Taste of Wayne attracted between 20 and 25 vendors. This year, organizers are hoping for about 30.
This isn't the first time the event, which has been held 21 times previously, has changed locations. Mrs. LeChot said it was held at the officers club at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base before moving to Wayne Community.
The 22nd annual Taste of Wayne is scheduled for Oct. 13 from 11 a.m. until 1:30 p.m. Tickets will go on sale one month ahead of the event.