Many people crowded Flat Iron Park and Riviera Plaza in downtown Lake Geneva to view snow sculptures that were featured as part of the 2021 U.S. National Snow Sculpting Championship, which was the highlight of the annual Winterfest, which was held Feb. 3 through Feb. 7.

Besides the snow sculptures, people enjoyed other Winterfest activities such as the Downtown Ice Sculpture Walk, cocoa crawl, hovercraft rides on Geneva Lake, and fire and ice bar at the Baker House.

City officials moved paid parking up a month from March to February to obtain additional parking revenue from Winterfest.

Parking Operations Manager Seth Elder said about $30,000 in parking revenue was generated for the city during Winterfest, with people paying for their parking through the ParkMobile app service and at the parking kiosks throughout downtown Lake Geneva.

Elder said Saturday Feb. 6 was busiest day— with about $15,163 being generated from parking revenue that day. He said about $2,795 was generated from the ParkMobile app and about $12,373 was generated from the Parking kiosks that day.

Kim Mazzarasi of Elgin, Illinois said she and her family decided to brave the cold temperatures to see the snow sculptures and enjoy the other Winterfest activities.

“We knew it would be cold. It’s a little colder than what we expected, but it’s worth it” Mazzarasi said. “It’s really neat to see the hard work and the art.”

Mazzarasi said this was the first time she had attended Winterfest and was impressed with the design of the snow sculptures.

“They’re so different, but they’re so detailed,” she said.

Mazzarasi said she learned about this year’s Winterfest from a friend who attended the previous day and posted photographs of the event on social media.

“We thought we would venture out. I’m glad we did. It’s really neat,” Mazzarasi said. “I heard about it a few years back, but I just never ventured out.”

Chris Anne Glover of Lake in the Hills, Illinois said she did not mind the cold temperatures as she and her family enjoyed viewing the snow sculptures and the ice sculptures that were placed in front of several businesses in downtown Lake Geneva.

“Surprisingly with the sunshine, it’s not too bad,” Glover said. “We though it would be fun to walk around town.”

Carrie Ann Strebe and Jason Strebe of Waterford said they decided to attend Winterfest, because their daughter, Eliana, wanted to take photographs of the snow sculptures.

“We decided to come down and check it out,” Jason Strebe.

Carrie Ann Strebe said she was impressed with the work that the sculpting teams put into their snow sculptures.

“It’s amazing what they can do with them,” Carrie Ann Strebe said. “It could be a little warmer, but it’s amazing and they look beautiful. The ice sculptures in front of the businesses, too, are really neat.”

Abby Selburg of Kenosha said she and her family saw a posting of Winterfest on social media and decided to attend, despite the cold temperatures.

“We saw it, and we were like, ‘Let’s check it out and get out of the house even though it’s cold,’” she said.

Selburg said this is the first time she had attended Winterfest and enjoyed seeing the sculptures and attending the other Winterfest activities.

“It’s really awesome,” Selburg said. “It’s cool to see the size of them.”

Carl Broady of Vernon Hills, Illinois said even though he did not enjoy the cold weather, he did enjoy taking photographs of the snow sculptures.

“I just got here, so I’m cooling down nicely,” Broady said. “They look pretty good. I’m pretty impressed.”

Broady said he attended Winterfest three years ago with members of a camera club.

“I’m back again for a second visit,” he said.

Broady said he is originally from England, and winters in the United States are a bit colder and snowier than the winters in England.

“England is a little milder,” Broady said. “There’s not as much snow.”

The cold temperatures did cause some Winterfest activities including the Bonfires on the Beach— which was set for Feb. 5 and Feb. 6— to be cancelled.

The announcement of the snow sculpting competition winners was moved indoors as a private event, Feb. 6, with the winners being posted on VISIT Lake Geneva’s Facebook page.

City officials moved paid parking up a month from March to February to obtain additional parking revenue from Winterfest.

Parking Operations Manager Seth Elder said about $30,000 in parking revenue was generated for the city during Winterfest, with people paying for their parking through the ParkMobile app service and at the parking kiosks throughout downtown Lake Geneva.

Elder said Saturday Feb. 6 was busiest day— with about $15,163 being generated from parking revenue that day. He said about $2,795 was generated from the ParkMobile app and about $12,373 was generated from the Parking kiosks that day.

The city did not immediately have available the number of tickets that were issued.