Penn Hills Parks & Recreation Summerfest back to normal

Organizers of the seventh annual Penn Hills Parks & Recreation Summerfest are looking forward to a return to normalcy.

The festival will take place Aug. 6 at Turner Friendship Park from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. A Zambelli fireworks show will go off at 9:30 p.m.

John Scaglione, assistant superintendent of public works and parks and recreation, said he hopes the event can draw numbers close to those in 2019, when the festival brought in 4,000 people. He looks forward to seeing the festival back to its full capacity.

“We are excited to get back to our normal event,” Scaglione said. “We do expect a bigger turnout.”

This year’s festival will feature an inflatable area for kids, more live music and a variety of food trucks.

Penn Hills Mayor Pauline Calabrese said she is excited to see the event back to its normal operations and expects the festival to be well attended.

“It has always been very well attended. I think part of it is it’s such a festive atmosphere with the music and food trucks,” she said.

The event was canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic. The festival was held on a smaller scale last year to ensure safety guidelines were followed and contact was limited. The festival did not showcase its usual attractions, such as carnival games and bouncy houses. The downsized festival did not affect turnout, however.