Hub City Car Show to Take Over Tower Avenue Saturday

It wouldn’t be summer in the Hub City without a namesake car show.

Close to 300 vehicles, some of which have a history dating back to the early years of the event, are expected to take up blocks of Tower Avenue from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday in downtown Centralia. Tower Avenue will be closed to traffic beginning about an hour before the car show opens to the public.

Anyone with a car of any age, make and model can enter the show for $15. Paula Sandirk, secretary-treasurer of the Lewis County Quarter-Milers club, said their relaxed set of rules helps create the laid-back atmosphere that draws people in year after year.

“People like the whole feeling of it,” Sandirk said. “It’s a fun car show. People sit along the sidewalk and we get everything from early models of trucks to some cars that are pretty current.”

Car enthusiasts will gather at 5 p.m. Friday night at Ken Stedham Sales and Service, located at 515 W. Main St., for a barbecue put on by members of the Centralia Elks Lodge. They’ll be serving hamburgers, sides and drinks for about $5 a plate.

“They’ll be out there serving food for as long as those patties last,” Sandirk said.

The Quarter-Milers club shares proceeds from the event with the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce, which helps run the event. The Rotary Club of Centralia will be operating the beer garden this year as part of their own fundraising efforts.

Bethel Church of downtown Centralia will host the Kids’ Zone. Various vendors will be set up alongside the cars parked on the street with storefronts on Tower Avenue expected to be open as well.

“We’re expecting the same turnout as last year, if not a little higher,” said Cecilia Jimenez, Marketing Manager for the Chamber of Commerce. “It’s lining up really nicely going from year to year.”

Along with their entry fees, net profits from the sale of T-shirts and raffle tickets go from the Quarter-Milers to fund scholarships for students studying in the Diesel Equipment Technology program and the Welding Technology program at Centralia College. The club also uses their proceeds each Christmas to support a local family in need.

Following the car show, an unaffiliated car cruise organized by Centralia resident Steve Kopa will take over the streets.

Kopa received permission from Centralia City Manager Rob Hill and Police Chief Carl Nielsen to lead what he’s calling Cruise Centralia from 4 p.m. to midnight. A map of the cruise route and other information will be available on-site and anyone can join in free of charge.

“We have 300 or more cars that show up for the car show and a captive audience there,” Kopa said. “Every year I’d watch thousands of people come in and then about 4:30 p.m., they were shooed away. I figured if we can keep those people in town, they’ll eat somewhere for dinner, maybe spend the night.”

Kopa’s motivations for seeking an exemption to a city ordinance passed in 1988 that banned cruising weren’t just financial. He’s hoping that a good first impression Saturday will lead to Cruise Centralia becoming an annual event.

“Centralia was really known for cruising back in the day,” Kopa said. “It didn’t matter what you were driving. I’m just going to run with it and see if it flies now.”

For more information on the car show, visit www.events.chamberway.com or call 360-748-8885.