The 18th annual 79th Street Renaissance Festival returns to Auburn Gresham on Saturday, Sept. 9, with entertainment, food, community resources and a carnival including a 50-foot-tall Ferris wheel.

The festival’s founders, Carlos Nelson and Cheryl Johnson, said it’s a showcase for everything there is to love about the community they call home.

“It’s miraculous to see that many families drop their kids off at 10 in the morning and just let them have this huge event — the petting zoo, the carnival rides, the horse rides,” Nelson said. “You think classic Chicago community, you think all the things that make up our great communities over the years, and that’s what you’ll see represented at the 79th Street Renaissance Festival.”

“You’re going to be entertained,” Johnson added. “You’re going to be able to benefit from the wealth of resources that are available to you and meet our community partners that offer all sorts of resources and development opportunities for local residents and investors.”

Among the planned festivities is what’s hoped to be the world’s largest “Cha Cha Slide,” in honor of Auburn Gresham native and “Cha Cha Slide” creator DJ Casper, who died last month.

The 79th Street Renaissance Festival opens at 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 9, at 79th Street and Racine Avenue. Suggested donation for entry is $5, and a complete schedule of events is available at the Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation site.