Four capybaras, a $210 million tower, and a pickle festival

The Digest

Lancaster's tallest building is now a $210 million project

Willow Valley's Mosaic is expected to cost around $210 million, more than twice the original estimate. The 20-story tower at 17 W. Vine St. breaks ground in November and will rise 244 feet, passing the 210-foot Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square as the tallest building in the county. First residents arrive in 2029, more than two years later than planned and eight years after the project was announced. Willow Valley paid $9.6 million for the former LNP production buildings on the site and demolished them last year.

Entrance fees rose about 20% last month and now run $804,000 to $1,886,000 for a single person. Eighty of the 146 units are reserved. The Marriott's own budget climbed from $108 million to $178 million during construction, so the pattern is not new.

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The fair's breakout stars are four baby capybaras

Cookie, Cake, Candy and Cream have been pulling hour-long lines at the Elizabethtown Fair. Rachel Applebee and Dominic Jurkiewicz waited an hour Wednesday night and still had about ten people ahead of them. Another family tag-teamed the line so dad could go play games and eat while his wife and daughter held the spot. The capybaras are 4 to 10 months old and travel with the Hog Diggity Dog Show, which brings camels, pigs and dogs to fairs across the country.

Owner Colleen Pages extended the meeting hours after organizers saw the crowds. "The lines have been long. It's been nonstop," she said. You can find them through Saturday, 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM and again 7:30 to 10 PM.

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What's happening

Friday

Free movie night: "Because of Winn-Dixie" | Bring a blanket or a lawn chair; food trucks and a beer garden on site | 6:30 to 9:00 PM | Binns Park, 123 N. Queen St., Lancaster | Free

Pedal Power Tractor Pull | A pedal-powered tractor pull at the fairgrounds | 6:00 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Annual Elizabethtown Fair Auction | The fair's yearly auction | 7:00 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Saturday

Lititz Stroller Gang Family Day | Bounce houses, cotton candy, a balloon artist and face painting | 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM | Lititz Springs Park, N. Broad St., Lititz | Free

Feria del Barrio | Live entertainment, kids' games, food, and local community resources | 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM | Hope Ministries and Community Services, 103 Locust St., Lancaster | Free

Lyn Hyle Memorial Car Show | More than 300 cars, trucks and motorcycles, with live music from The Nomads | 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM | Manheim Township Community Park, 209 Petersburg Rd., Lancaster | Free for spectators, $20 to register a car

Hay Bale Throwing Contest | Exactly what it sounds like | 12:00 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Frog Jumping Contest | A frog jumping contest, on the last day of the fair | 4:30 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Elizabethtown Fair closing fireworks | Fireworks to close out the last night of the fair | 10:45 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Sunday

West Art Bloc Party | Buchanan Avenue closes to traffic for live entertainment, food and craft vendors | 10:00 AM to 5:30 PM | Buchanan Ave., from College Ave. to Race Ave., Lancaster | Free

Picklefest at Decades | Pickle patty melts, fried pickles, pickle ice cream, and a pickle selfie station | Noon to 4:00 PM | Decades, 438 N. Queen St., Lancaster | Free

Now Playing

Pretty Woman: The Musical | The Broadway adaptation, running through Sept. 24 | Fri 6:00 dinner and 7:30 show · Sat 11:30 lunch and 1:00 show, 6:00 dinner and 7:30 show · Sun 5:30 dinner and 7:00 show | Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre, 510 Centerville Rd., Lancaster | $83 evening dinner and show, $78 matinee, show only $55 adults and $22 ages 18 and under, plus a $3 per ticket fee

Joshua | Sight & Sound's 2026 production, running through Dec. 31 | Sat 11:00 AM, 3:00 PM and 7:00 PM | Sight & Sound Theatres, 300 Hartman Bridge Rd., Ronks | $82 to $104 adults, $44 ages 2 to 12

Live music

Friday

Keri Edwards | Variety | 6:00 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Josh Squared Band | Variety | 6:30 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Stogie Wagon | Outlaw country and honky-tonk | 5:00 to 9:00 PM | Conestoga House & Gardens, 1608 Marietta Ave., Lancaster | $25

Saturday

Benjamin Vo | Blues | Noon to 6:00 PM | East Petersburg Blues Festival, East Petersburg Community Park, 6051 Pine St., East Petersburg | Free

Laura Cheadle and the Family Band | Blues | Noon to 6:00 PM | East Petersburg Blues Festival, East Petersburg Community Park, 6051 Pine St., East Petersburg | Free

Slim and the South Street Hustle | Blues | Noon to 6:00 PM | East Petersburg Blues Festival, East Petersburg Community Park, 6051 Pine St., East Petersburg | Free

The Eighties Club Band | Eighties covers | 6:00 to 10:00 PM | Charles Frey Park at The Shoppes at Belmont, 1600 Fruitville Pike, Lancaster | Free

Flow Tribe | Funk | 6:00 PM | Marion Court Room, 7 E. Marion St., Lancaster | Free

The Nielsen Family Band | Movie and music night in the park | 6:00 PM | Musser Park, 135 N. Lime St., Lancaster | Free

Kayleigh Clark | Country, from American Idol | 9:15 PM | Elizabethtown Fairgrounds, 900 E. High St., Elizabethtown | Free

Sunday

Jam Session with Matt Wenger | Open jam, bring an instrument | 2:00 to 5:00 PM | Tellus360, 24 E. King St., Lancaster | Free, 21+