First ever UFO Days invades St. Paul

The inaugural St. Paul UFO Days festival exceeded attendance expectations, drawing hundreds of visitors from across Alberta for a three-day celebration.

ST. PAUL – The inaugural St. Paul UFO Days drew more visitors than expected during its three-day run from July 10 to 12. From talent and art shows, UFO talks, and a midway, the UFO theme was a big draw for visitors from outside the region, with some visitors traveling from as far as Calgary and Edmonton, according to Shelby Deep, office manager of the St. Paul Ag Society.

Deep was also the organizer who pushed for the UFO Days concept and the midway. While there is no hard attendance tally out over the three days, Deep said visits at the UFO landing pad itself recorded over 500 people on July 11, which was the busiest day of the multi-day event. Deep said staff at the landing pad had not seen that many visitors come through and make purchases in five years.

“I think the turnout of people was more than we expected,” Deep told Lakeland This Week. "And so that was really good for our first attempt.” St. Paul and District Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Yvonne Weinmeier also estimated over 700 people visited St. Paul specifically to attend the festivities.

The market inside the St. Paul Rec Centre on July 11, which saw over 60 participating vendors, is a good example of the success of the event. “It was nonstop all day long,” said Weinmeier. Weinmeier also added that while an afternoon storm on Saturday event pushed crowds into the recreation centre, it did not last very long before the midway picked back up.

“There were lots of people on the rides and just visiting and hanging around,” she said. Both Deep and Weinmeier thanked everyone who came out. “It was really good to see everybody come together and be a strong community,” said Weinmeier.

Deep agreed, stating, “The goal is to have fun, [and] for people to come out and just enjoy the weekend.” Deep hopes to host another UFO Days again next year. “Next year, I hope we can do it bigger and better to celebrate the 60th anniversary

[of the landing pad],” she said. St. Paul's UFO landing pad, recognized as the world's first UFO landing pad, was built in 1967 as one of the town's Canadian centennial projects. Chamber perspective, Weinmeier is also receptive to the idea.

Events like UFO Days boost local businesses, with visitors shopping in stores and eating at restaurants while they are in town. “There was definitely a huge impact on our economy for the town just for this one event,” she said. The organizing committee has released a survey to gather community feedback and decide whether UFO Days will return.

“We're hoping that it happens again, but the survey will tell us if we will do this again,” Weinmeier said.