An overcast sky and a 50-degree temperature offered a chilly day around University Park for Springfest revelers in Grand Forks on Saturday, but Mitch Coddington was happy to be there.
"I would've flew from anywhere in the world. Anywhere in the world!" said Coddington, who said he came from Denver to attend to the annual outdoor party that marks the end of spring and draws UND students wrapping up their semester.
Coddington, dressed in a flamboyant purple pimp getup with leopard-pattern trim, said he graduated in 2010.
"This is my seventh Springfest in a row. I wouldn't miss it."
Attendees were sparse in Springfest's fenced-off designated area at the southeast corner of the park, flanked by a stage, beer tent and concessions trailers. Crowds were thicker in the front yards of houses on the south side of University Avenue and at other houses around the neighborhood.
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"It's like a rotating party," said Jordan Dibich, working the entrance to the park's Springfest zone.
Signs of parties were visible along University Avenue, which was dotted with beer cans and other litter. Elliot Semuskie picked up cans from the grass in front of University Lutheran Church.
The event's noise, debris and raucousness have not always been popular among neighborhood residents, but Scott Gausvik said he did not mind the activity around his house at 2018 University Ave.
"The kids deserve one day out of the year," he said. "That's all they want. One day out the year -- let them have it."
