Good times will be scared up during numerous Halloween festivities on the Peninsula this year.
There will be lots of frightfully fun activities, including the annual kids costume contests in Ocean Beach and a daytime party at Liberty Station. Halloween Carnival The annual Halloween Carnival at OB Rec Center, 4726 Santa Monica Ave., will be from 2 to 5 p.m. Oct. 29. Guests are requested to bring a Halloween bag for prizes and treats and wear a costume for a chance to win an award in the Halloween costume contest.
Costume Contest Times are: Infant to 3 years old: 2:40 p.m.; 4-6 years old: 3 p.m.; 7-9 years old: 3:20 p.m.; 10-12 years old: 3:40 p.m.; 13-16 years old: 4 p.m.; and17-Adult: 4:10 p.m.
OB Rec Center will award prizes for most creative, scariest, funniest and prettiest costumes. There will also be carnival games, activities, music, food and more.
Wristbands will be sold for $2 and good for all activities and games. Food sold separately.
For more information, call 619-531-1527. Halloween parties Frightful activities this year will also include daytime Halloween parties for people and pooches at Liberty Station. On Saturday, Oct. 29, four-legged revelers will be getting into the act as they and their two-legged caretakers can come trick or treating at booths at the DogFest Walk ‘n Roll to be held in Liberty Station throughout the day. The event raises funds for, and brings awareness to, the need for canine companion service animals.
The second annual free Daytime Halloween Party in Liberty Station’s Arts District will take place 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 30. The family friendly event is being presented by the San Diego Comic Art Gallery and Comickaze – Comic Books and More. The event will take place on the North Promenade in the Arts District.
“We moved here a year ago and we wanted people to know we were here so we came up with the idea of a daytime event,” said Robbie Robbins, senior graphic art director for IDW Publishing. He added the event will involve a comic book giveaway, costume judging for toddlers, older youth and even adults, as well as “recreational music.”
“The Recreational Music Center will provide drum circles for families where kids can beat drums and shake shakers and dance around,” Robbins said, adding there will also be “kids rock bands playing.”
Robbins noted Kevin Eastman, co-creator of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, will sign autographs in the art gallery and he will also be one of the judges for the kids costume contest.
“The overall idea was just to have a big family atmosphere down here,” Robbins said adding, “There wasn’t a whole lot down this way when we moved into Liberty Station.”
Even Liberty Market is getting into the holiday horror spirit, Robbins said.
“Liberty Market is going to have a pumpkin patch, pumpkin painting and will be giving away candy to trick or treaters at the various booths,” he said. “There will also be a crafts table where people can make their own masks or trick-or-treat bags.”
Guests can start trick or treating at Comickaze Comics at 2570 Historic Decatur Road in Barracks 15, then wander, explore and haunt the rest of the Arts District. Festivities will also include a Hollywood car show with vehicles from the movies “Ghostbusters” and “Back To The Future” featured.
Liberty Station Halloween weekend events will also include a 5K ADHD Hero Run/Walk Sunday, Oct. 30 at 2455 Cushing Road sponsored by Hope So Bright. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a brain disorder marked by an ongoing pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity.
Hope So Bright’s first annual 5K ADHD Hero Run/Walks are community fundraisers and educational outreach programs that raise awareness about ADHD with special consideration given to the underserved. All proceeds from this event will go to programs and services that support children with ADHD. Scare on Voltaire Sadly, Scare on Voltaire, hosted by OB Arts Collective, where guests experience Halloween through artist’s eyes, has been canceled. Sponsors however pledged that San Diego’s largest free Halloween fest will return next year with an even larger and eerier lineup.
“The event is not happening this year due to a few factors including funding,” said Reina Mystique of OB Arts Collective, which started the event as a block party on Saratoga Avenue. “This would have been the fourth year, with three held previously and four years off in-between.”
“We are hoping to do it again next year, starting earlier,” said Mystique of the event always held on the Saturday before Halloween day.
Scare on Voltaire has previously been an all-day fest with live music, kids and adults’ play areas and, in the words of Mystique, “features tons of art and a great time with people hanging out.”