ATLANTA - The first-ever Happy Wiener Festival in Atlanta was off to a fun start Saturday with the city's large Paul Bunyan statue as the centerpiece to a celebration of everything Atlanta.

The downtown area was filled with people visiting the various craft and wine tasting booths, and enjoying rides, games, entertainment and food vendors. There also was a dedication of the first Route 66 Preservation Award Saturday morning.

One Atlanta resident happy to see the festival started was 90-year-old Paul Adams, the oldest member of the town's community band.

"There is a lot of energy in this small town," Adams said. "It's a great place to live, and it seems now that we have some young folks moving in we're getting everyone involved and starting new things, like the Happy Wiener Festival."

Atlanta Alderman Annette Chapman was the person who brainstormed the new festival, and was pleased with the results.

"We had a couple bumps in the road Friday night, but that's to be expected for a first-ever festival," said Chapman. "This is our way of celebrating what's unique about Atlanta. This is definitely going to start being an annual event."

The Happy Wiener Festival was named after two of the city's trademarks: its yellow smiley-faced water tower and the giant statue of Paul Bunyan holding a hot dog.

Cheyenne Roher, 10, of Cornland, also was excited about the new event.

"They're just fun. I like riding rides and enjoy the food," said Roher. "This looks like a fun festival."

For Ernie Edwards, owner of the famous Pig Hip Museum and Restaurant in Broadwell, the festival was another way to promote historic Route 66 and its attractions.

"These festivals are coming pretty fast, and this is now the first one for us in the area," said Edwards. "I hope it's good and successful, and I hope people who attend the festival learn about our museum and restaurant and check us out."

In conjunction with the festival, there also was a presentation of the first Route 66 Preservation Award. It was given to the Hamlet Arthur Stephens family for their dedication to the highway and for allowing Atlanta to place the large Bunyan statue in town after the family's restaurant, The Bunyan Hot Dog Stand in Cicero, closed in 2003. The statue was moved to Atlanta that year to keep it in Illinois as a Route 66 landmark.

"I never expected so much attention to come from this statue that I put up to try and attract customers," said Stephens.

The festival continues today with the Big Kids Toys event from 1 to 4 p.m. Rides, food, games, crafts, and entertainment also continue until 10 p.m. The J.H. Hawes elevator will celebrate its 102nd anniversary and a Blackhawk helicopter will fly in at 1 p.m. For a complete schedule visit www.happywienerfest.com .