COVINGTON, Ga. — City officials are preparing for two events that promise to bring thousands to the Covington Square and Legion Field, including one themed around the "Vampire Diaries" TV show filmed in Covington.
A "Change the World" event at Covington United Methodist Church is planned for Saturday morning, Oct. 22, and will somewhat overlap the main event: a convention titled I Was Feeling Epic in Mystic Falls.
I Was Feeling Epic offered tickets to events that sold out as early as June, organizers said.
Covington Police plan to begin closing the Square area to traffic Saturday about 4 p.m. and finish closing it by 6 p.m., Community Development director Ken Malcom told Covington City Council members Monday.
They anticipate about 7,000 convention-goers and other non-ticket holders merely hanging around the area to see the various planned costume contest and other activities, .
"We expect it to be a big weekend," Malcom said. "A profitable weekend for the merchants."
A giant video screen will be erected in the Square area to allow those in the area wanting to see celebrities attending some ticketed events, he said.
About 1,000 bought tickets to events at which stars like Ian Somerhalder are slated to attend.
Malcom said hotels and motels in the area have been sold out.
Covington Police plan to maintain a heavy presence in the two main areas, officials said.
Somerhalder is to be among celebrities who will be part of a “meet and greet” for fans Saturday.
He and fellow “Vampire Diaries’ star Paul Wesley also are set to host a tasting and “meet and greet’ for the new Brothers Bond Bourbon brand they recently launched.
Tickets range from $150 to $500 for the Sunday night event at Legion Field. Visit https://epiccons.ticketleap.com/an-epic-brothers-bond-bourbon-tasting-event-hosted-by-ian-somer/dates/Oct-23-2022_at_0800PM for more information.
The Change the World event at Covington UMC is set for 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. It is set to feature live music, food court, inflatables, community service fair, health expo, petting zoo, photo booth, a food pantry, information on community agencies, school supplies, diapers and other events.
For more information, visit https://www.covingtonfirst.org.
