Pardall Road was jam-packed with students and community members for the Isla Vista Community Relations Committee’s 15th annual Pardall Carnival on May 4. Around 800 people passed by throughout the day, though the Ferris wheel, a staple of the event in prior years, stood idle after its generator broke.

The Pardall Carnival is a part of IVCRC’s alternative programming which aims to be substance-free and break free from party culture stigma. Lance Sanchez / Daily Nexus

Lasting from 12-5 p.m., the carnival featured a mechanical bull, dunk tank, petting zoo, various carnival games, face painting, caricature artists and a photo booth. Local bands including Birchwood, The Sweeps, Junkyard, Ex-Girlfriends Anonymous and Blue Lemonade performed in front of the Pardall Center.

Local bands including Birchwood, The Sweeps, Junkyard, Ex Girlfriends Anonymous and Blue Lemonade performed in front of the Pardall Center. Lance Sanchez / Daily Nexus

The carnival was advertised extensively on social media and through emails sent to students, with much of the promotional material focusing on the Ferris wheel. However, the day of the carnival, the generator for the Ferris wheel broke, rendering it inoperable.

The Isla Vista Community Relations Committee (IVCRC) set up tables along the street for various Associated Student organizations, registered student organizations, local businesses and small vendors.

Attendees could collect stamps from 10 different tables to earn “pardollas,” which they could exchange for free food from either Sam’s To Go, Yetz’s Bagels & Deli, I.V. Deli Mart, Zocalo, Antojitos or Maria’s Tacos.

The carnival featured various activities including carnival games, a mechanical bull, a petting zoo, face painting and a photo booth. Lance Sanchez / Daily Nexus

According to IVCRC Events Coordinator and third-year history of public policy and law major Vanessa Manakova, the carnival is a part of IVCRC’s “alternative programming,” which aims to be substance-free to break free from I.V.’s party culture stigma.

“Everyone knows that Isla Vista is very party culture. I think people here are really good at not peer pressuring, but the culture around it can promote that kind of peer pressure,” Manakova said. “We’re trying to bring the community members and students together and trying to get rid of that stigma.”

Life of the Party (LOTP), a student-run organization that advocates for safe partying, tabled at the carnival in order to spread awareness about partying safely. 

“We understand that students are going to party, which is why we’re not abstinence-based, but we want students to have the tools to do it safely,” LOTP intern and third-year pharmacology major Desiree Pekar said. “[Safety is] really important, because we unfortunately lose a lot of lives to drug overdoses and alcohol poisoning and mixing as well.” 

Pekar said that LOTP aims to save lives through its promotion of safe partying. According to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, “a total of 168 overdose deaths occurred in 2022, with 115 of them being related to fentanyl.”

“Our role in the community is so important because we’re hoping that the information we give will hopefully save a life,” Pekar said.

Fourth-year environmental studies major Fernanda Vasquez Sanchez said she enjoyed how the event provided a fun and safe space for attendees.

“I love how there’s so much stuff for students to do because on weekends people like partying [but] sometimes it can be kind of dangerous,” Vasquez Sanchez said. “I like how this is a really safe and family-friendly option for all of us to hang out and do fun stuff for free.”

New clubs such as Lemon Club, a group dedicated to raising money for fighting childhood cancer, and Plant Futures at UC Santa Barbara, a climate activism and sustainability group, found the carnival was an opportunity to promote themselves. 

“We had low expectations, just because we’re so new,” Plant Futures Co-President and third-year global studies and environmental studies double major Annalise Williams said. “But we’ve had some really great outreach. And I think our main goal was just to start getting our names out there.”

IVCRC Graphic Design Coordinator and second-year applied math major Mia Labrador emphasized how the carnival brings the community together.

“It is open to the community, so we get to see kids, families, elderly people. Literally anyone can come and just have a good time. Everything’s free, which is a great thing too, just being inclusive always,” Labrador said.

A version of this article appeared on p. 6 of the May 8, 2025 print edition of the Daily Nexus.