At the April 23rd La Mesa City Council meeting, the council voted by a 4-1 vote (Ruth Sterling being the dissenter) to reject the application for the La Mesa Oktoberfest from the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce and give the application to the La Mesa Village Merchants Association and the 4 month old La Mesa Chamber of Commerce. The East County Chamber will have no role in the 2008 La Mesa Oktoberfest.

Board of Directors Chairman, Kirk Gentry said, “The San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce is very proud of the 34 years its volunteers established and built the La Mesa Oktoberfest. From a sidwalk sale in the 70's to the largest Oktoberfest celebration west of the Mississippi, the Chamber was an integral part of the marketing and building of what is now a Southern California institution.”

The Chamber would like to thank our vendors, suppliers, musicians, dancers, volunteers and the people of La Mesa who made the Oktoberfest Beergarden such a special place during the first weekend of October for two generations".

The Chamber will look at other options to replace the revenue that the Oktoberest Beergarden generated for its programs, and will continue to support the economic vitality of La Mesa and the entire East County business community.