Territory Days festival returns to Old Colorado City this weekend

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO)-- Preparations are already underway for the Territory Days Festival in Old Colorado City. The Memorial Day weekend festival is back for the first time in three years after the pandemic forced cancelations in 2020 and 2021.

Shop owners hope that will lead to renewed energy in the neighborhood, and a chance to make up for lost revenue.

After two quieter Memorial Day weekends at Carnelian coffee, co-owner Colton Klauss is getting his first taste of the action.

"This is actually my first territory days, so I've heard a bunch of stuff. I'm expecting it to be just absolutely insane," he said. "You know, it brings in a lot of money and a lot of exposure for our company."

While many of the tents and vendors aren't local, they will bring a lot of people to Old Colorado City.

"We've heard crazy estimates, anywhere from like 35,000 to 100,000 people," shop founder and co-owner Kate Firoved said. "We just aren't really sure what to expect because it's been two years since we've had it last.

For new business owners, like Laurie Lindsley-Peterson, Territory Days, and the crowds it will bring are a chance to make their marks.

Lindsley-Peterson's children's clothing store, Lala + Koko, has been open for two months.

"I'm just excited to see people come out after the pandemic," she said.

Memorial Day brings in foot traffic no matter what, but with Territory Days' reputation as the largest street festival in Colorado, the three-day event holds the promise of even more business.

"We get people from all over Colorado, which is really fun," Firoved said. "People that wouldn't normally come down here kind of see the cool things that we have going on in O.C.C., and they'll come back, which is really nice."

The celebration gets going Saturday at 10 a.m. and goes on until 7 p.m. The festival runs through Monday.