Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Entertainment

Star sponge will draw in sponge festival crowd

That lovable square yellow underwater dweller will highlight the second annual celebration.

By NORA KOCH
Published May 13, 2005

TARPON SPRINGS - Looking to soak up some good times this weekend?

Join cartoon celeb SpongeBob SquarePants as he takes to the streets of the world's natural sponge capital for the second annual festival in honor of the city's signature absorbent item.

Nearly 20,000 people are expected to flow to downtown Tarpon Springs today, Saturday and Sunday for a carnival, parade and photo ops with what is arguably the world's most famous sponge.

The synthetic SpongeBob stirred up controversy here in the past, with some locals saying aligning with a cartoon character mocked the city's trademark industry.

But the opposition was wrung out and last year about 18,000 people flocked to the event, sponsored by the local Chamber of Commerce and the Tarpon Springs Business Alliance.

"It just seemed like for Tarpon Springs, we're the largest sponge industry in the world (so) why not bring in this character to go with our city?" organizer Katie Hambrick said.

SpongeBob is an A-lister in some circles, such as with Hambrick's two grandchildren, who wear shoes and shorts and hang posters with his likeness.

But for those who will be behind the camera this weekend or paying for ride passes at the carnival, the festival is a chance to highlight the city's historic area and antique district, Hambrick said.

"A lot of people just don't realize what all is downtown," she said.

A carnival begins today at 4 p.m. on city lots on Alt. U.S. 19 and Court Street. It opens on Saturday and Sunday at 10 a.m.

SpongeBob is scheduled to be on the premises after Saturday's parade until about 6 p.m. and will return on Sunday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. The parade begins at 10 a.m. on Walton Avenue, heads north to Tarpon Avenue and turns west, ending at Alt. U.S. 19. Police will close Tarpon Avenue from Alt. U.S. 19 to Huey Avenue from 9 to 11 a.m.

WFLA-AM 970 radio host Jack Harris floated the idea to bring SpongeBob to Tarpon Springs back in 2002.

He will take part in Saturday's parade, and said last year's event brought a lot of people to Tarpon Springs who might not have ever come were it not for the allure of SpongeBob.

Many, he said, discovered the antique shops along Tarpon Avenue and visited Spring Bayou for the first time.

"I was there last year all day Saturday, and it was tremendous because so many people have never discovered Tarpon Springs," Harris said.

Staff writer Richard Danielson contributed to this report.

[Last modified May 13, 2005, 00:57:16]