KENT—Main Street and its tributaries will be ablaze with light and action on Halloween night, Thursday, Oct. 31, when ghoulies and ghosts emerge to demand tricks or treats.
The business community is getting involved, with many businesses staying open late and offering treats to youngsters.
Among them will be Bain Real Estate at 21 North Main St., where trick or treat goodies will be dispensed, along with the Lions Club’s glow-in-the dark safety necklaces, starting at 4 p.m.
“Heron Gallery, the IGA, Kent Library—all these places will be doing trick or treat,” said Gary Kidd, co-proprietor of 45 on Main. “We’re trying to make Halloween a very fun place and time.”
Homeowners on nearby streets will join in the fun, as will St. Andrew’s Church, which will continue its tradition of handing out candy on the steps of the church for a couple of hours.
At 7 p.m., South Kent School will present its “Thriller” dance at the Golden Falcon field where the lyrics from Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”— “Darkness falls across the land. The midnight hour is close at hand. Creatures crawl in search of blood, to terrorize your neighborhood …”— have been interpreted for more than a decade by performances by South Kent’s Thriller Flash Mob.
Kidd, himself, has a whoopie party planned for 45 on Main, where his coffee and chocolate shop will remain open late. “We’ll be staying open until 9-ish,” he said.
The shop is already fantastically decorated, and Kidd said he will entertain visitors with live music from bagpiper Jesse Ofgang, as well as offer treats, games such as apple bobbing and doughnuts on a string, refreshments of apple cider, and more.
“Jesse will be playing jigs and some Halloween stuff,” Kidd said.
While the continued fire hazard occasioned by the long dry spell means there will be no bonfire this year, Kidd has added a costume contest at 7:30 p.m. with Rob Zombie and his wife, Sheri Moon Zombie, serving as the judges.
There will be prizes for adults and kids for the scariest, most original, funniest as well as for best pet costume.
Rob Zombie, who lives locally, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker and actor. He rose to fame as a founding member and frontman of the heavy metal band, White Zombie. He has directed several horror films, beginning with “House of 1,000 Corpses,” and including a remake of “Halloween” in 2007 and “Halloween II” in 2009.
“Rob has done a bunch of horror movies and is very famous,” said Kidd. “It’s just going to be a fun night for the whole community.”
First Selectman Marty Lindenmayer said he met Oct. 25 with his Emergency Management team, whose members are trained in traffic control.
“A lot of parents park in Kent Green and there will be kids running all over the place. We will be putting out traffic cones to slow motorists and there will be a temporary pedestrian crossing near the railroad tracks to get kids across the road to 45 on Main,” Lindenmayer said.
State police will be controlling traffic at the intersection of routes 7 and 341. Lane Street, where there are no sidewalks, and Elizabeth Street, where there is a sidewalk on only one side of the street, will be restricted to local traffic.
Traffic measures will be in place from around 4 p.m. until around 8 p.m., depending on the number of trick-or-treaters on the streets and their locations, Lindenmayer added.
“We’ll have communications and coordinate our efforts,” he said. “It’s the safety of the kids and letting them have a great time that’s important. Our townspeople are phenomenal, and we have a lot of fun.”
