
Smiling faces will abound at the Wonderland children’s area of the 31st annual Ocean Beach Street Fair and Chili Cook-Off Festival on Saturday, June 26. “Come and spend the whole day listening to music and having fun in the sun,” said Claudia Jack, associate director of the Ocean Beach MainStreet Association, which organizes and produces the annual event. The Wonderland zone is named after the first amusement park in Ocean Beach and will offer lively and exciting activities for children and parents alike. The original Wonderland Amusement Park first opened on July 4, 1913 at Voltaire and Abbott streets on the sand. It was home to a large roller coaster, a dance pavilion, merry-go-round and a children’s playground. In 1916, most of it was washed away by tides. Fast-forward to today’s street fair, where children ages 3 to 10 can recapture a little bit of that carefree magic and enjoy carnival-style rides — including a huge slide — for affordable prices. Pony rides, for those 6 months and older and weighing less than 100 pounds, will be available for reasonable fares as well, said organizers. Reaching a hand into a freshly-made bag of kettlekorn, sipping on an ice-cold slushy and eating a hotdog in the sun could make everyone feel like a kid again. Enjoy the comfortable seating and plan on spending the day in Ocean Beach. Vendors will share their wares, including clothing and other goodies. The Wonderland children’s area will be located in the Rite Aid parking lot and at the east end of Newport Avenue by Sunset Cliffs Boulevard from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.








