OSWEGO N.Y-- It's drawn national music acts including county-singer Kenney Chesney and The Drifters. It's hard to imagine Oswego's Harborfest first began as a small music festival 27 years ago.
"It started out the first year in 1988 at the city hall steps and walked here to Breitbeck Park and had a few hundred people here to start Harborfest," said Harborfest Executive Director Doug Buske.
Since it's beginning, the four-day festival has brought thousands into the Port City. At it's peak, 300,000 people would attend.
The focus is the music, bringing both local and national acts to Oswego.
"There's something for everyone here. We have a seniors concert, a children's park, we have a blues stage that has jazz, the main stage we have rock and all other kinds of entertainment up from the 60s to the 90s," said Buske.
While the festival has weathered challenges over the years, organizers said one thing that has stayed consistent: the world-famous fireworks.
"It just fills to sky, fills the harbor with all kinds of colors, some that you couldn't imagine for fireworks. It's just a spectacular show put to music and I'll tell you, it's well worth the trip to Oswego to see it," Foley said.
Planning Harborfest is a year-long effort and what used to be a full-time staff of eight is now a part-time staff of of five. The music festival has also lost attendance and had their budget cut.
Organizers say typically now, about 150,000 to 200,000 people attend.
"The folks around here can come out, relax, enjoy music. It doesn't cost them anything to sit and enjoy the concerts, what along the lake with the sun setting. It's just a spectacular venue," Foley said.
With this year's Harborfest set to take place July 23 through the 26, organizers say they are finalizing some last minute details.