Construction Boom Smashes Tradition at Jared's Giant Pumpkin Festival

Denver's building boom has created many challenges for people in the metro area - traffic jams, parking problems — but none as troublesome as this: Jared's Nursery Gift and Garden Center in Littleton has lost the construction crane for its pumpkin drop. The drop is supposed to be the spectacular culmination of...

By Patricia Calhoun

September 23, 2016

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Denver's building boom has created many challenges for people in the metro area — traffic jams, parking problems — but none as troublesome as this: Jared's Nursery Gift and Garden Center in Littleton has lost the construction crane for its pumpkin drop. The drop is supposed to be the spectacular culmination of its Giant Pumpkin Festival and Weigh-Off, which runs from 9 to 4 p.m. tomorrow. But yesterday, after the crane operator who'd confirmed on Monday suddenly canceled, Jared's posted this plaintive plea on Facebook:

OOOOHHHH NNNNOOOOO!!! The Booming Construction throughout Colorado has taken our PUMPKIN DROPPING CRANE away!!!!! Brian called this morning and said he did not have a crane available to come to the weigh-off. BOOO HOOOO!!!!

Anyone have a friend with a Crane?.

This is the eleventh annual pumpkin festival at Jared's; the event regularly attracts thousands of people and enough giant pumpkins to nail the state record eight times in the past ten years. And this year, Jared's again anticipates having Colorado's biggest gourd — but those regulars who'll expect to see huge pumpkins falling from the sky will have to drop their expectations to ground level.

Unless some construction company takes pity on Jared's. Got crane? Call 303-979-6022.

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Patricia Calhoun is editor-in-chief of Westword, the alt-weekly she co-founded in September 1977. She’s been inducted into the Colorado Press Association Hall of Fame, the Association of Alternative Newsmedia Hall of Fame and the Colorado Restaurant Association Hall of Fame. She’s also received dozens of local, state and national awards for writing, including first place for feature writing and first place for column writing with the Society of Professional Journalists. Patricia is a weekly commentator on Colorado Inside Out, PBS 12's public affairs roundtable, which has won two Emmys.

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