The Edmonds Rotary Club is launching a new Edmonds Oktoberfest event, scheduled for Sept. 20 and 21 at Frances Anderson Center playfield in downtown Edmonds.

Edmonds Oktoberfest will be the first of its kind in the area, headlined by a brew fest featuring local breweries where visitors can taste samples of their favorite flavors. Wine and root beer will also be available.

“We’re excited and confident that Edmonds Oktoberfest will become a new favorite city tradition for a new generation of residents and businesses alike,” said Edmonds Rotary President David Kaufer. “This will be an Edmonds kind of Oktoberfest, with its own unique twist on the traditional Bavarian fall festival.

“It won’t only be beer and wine though,” Kaufer continued. “Edmonds Oktoberfest will also be a family-friendly event, with activities and food for kids and parents alike.”

These activities include:

• • A kids area featuring bouncy houses at the upgraded playground area at Frances Anderson Field.
  • Food trucks with an assortment of tasty bites parked along 8th Avenue.
  • Urban Craft Uprising – featuring dozens of booths of local indie craft makers.
  • A new 5K run and 1K fun run/Pet Parade.

More activities are in the planning stages, Kaufer said.

In addition to raising money for Edmonds-focused activities such as its student scholarship program and funding for the Edmonds Waterfront Center, Edmonds Rotary also announced that it is planning to help build a new inclusive play area, in partnership with the City of Edmonds.

“We have helped build playgrounds in Edmonds — and around the world. But we’ve never helped build a play area quite like this playground, which will be similar to Inspiration Playground in Bellevue,” said Kaufer. He added that the Bellevue Inspiration Playground has gained a reputation as a destination spot for Puget Sound families impacted by disabilities — both developmental and physical — and the hope is the Edmonds inclusive play area will become a destination spot for families as well.

“The new inclusive play area will be an exciting and imaginative new space at the new Edmonds Civic Park, where all ages and abilities will be able to play and explore at their own pace,” he said. “We’re even hoping to include a carousel that can be accessed and enjoyed by those in wheelchairs – as well as all kids from age 5 to 95.”

Edmonds Oktoberfest is still in the planning stages and new details will be released soon through the website EdmondsOktoberfest.com and on the Facebook page Facebook.com/EdmondsRotaryOktoberfest.

“Supporting the First Annual Edmonds Oktoberfest provides local breweries and businesses alike with an opportunity to get in on the ground floor of an exciting new event, and build a foundation for an annual event that has the potential to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars that we can put into our community,” Kaufer said.

More information about Edmonds Rotary can be found at EdmondsRotary.com.