By Chris Gomez | Little Italy News

Little Italy is chock full of events this fall.

Since there are so many around the corner, we wanted to give you a preview — get ready to mark your calendar with all these beloved events!

Labor Day weekend West Coast stickball tournament — Saturday, Sept. 5 and Sunday, Sept. 6: This Labor Day weekend watch the streets of Little Italy come alive with the good ol’ American (East Coast) Stickball. Every year local teams come together to play for the right to call themselves the king of the block — the champions!  Come out to Columbia Street, between West Beech and West Cedar streets and India Street between West A and West Ash streets from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. to see the stickball teams battle for the crown.

21st Annual Little Italy “FESTA!” — Oct. 11: San Diego’s Little Italy is home to the largest Italian festival in the nation — FESTA! This year’s 21st anniversary celebration is going to be the biggest yet, with the Sicilian Festival merging with FESTA! 2015, on Sunday, Oct. 11 from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. The Italian cultural festival is a day filled with authentic live Italian entertainment, Italian food, stickball and bocce ball tournaments, a colorful flag procession and of course the festival’s favorite — “Gesso Italiano” (Italian Chalk) to celebrate one of the most iconic neighborhoods not only in San Diego, but in the country. FESTA! showcases everything the San Diego Little Italy neighborhood has been able to achieve and highlights all of the incredible things that make this community so special. From the food and the art, to the activities and the music and dancing — Little Italy invites everyone to become a part of its “famiglia” by taking part in this year’s FESTA!

The Bulls of St. Agata Charge Little Italy — Oct. 24: O’Gara Coach Company and the Little Italy Association invite visitors to get up-close-and-personal, as over 40 classic and rare “Italian bulls” fill West Fir Street, between India Street and Kettner Boulevard with dozens of Lamborghinis. The annual exotic car show will be Oct. 24, from 6 – 10 p.m. Come out with your family and friends to soak up the sights of these souped-up rides and enjoy the musical talents of Teagan Taylor.

Trick-or-Treat on India Street — Oct. 30: Little ghouls, witches and goblins will storm through the streets at Little Italy’s ninth annual Trick-or-Treat on India Street, Oct. 30 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. Families are encouraged to bring their little monsters out in costume attire to this fun and safe Halloween event to enjoy traditional trick-or-treating, as Little Italy businesses along historic India Street open their doors to give out candy and Halloween treats.

It’s never too early to make plans with your family and friends to come down to Little Italy for all these premier events.

More details about any of Little Italy’s events can be found by visiting littleitalysd.com. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @LittleItalySD and Facebook/San Diego Little Italy to check out what other things are going on in our neighborhood.

—Christopher Gomez has been Little Italy’s district manager since 2000. Reach him at [email protected].