OTTUMWA — September, if you can believe it, wraps this week.

In truth, the month will end whether people believe it or not. And that makes this weekend Ottumwa’s Oktoberfest.

Jack Guiter is in charge of getting everything organized for this year. He says people will see a couple minor changes, but the basics are the same ones that have made the event a success for years.

“You’ll see normal, Oktoberfest activities,” he said.

The first big event is the favorite for many as the Ottumwa Rotary Club hosts its 30th annual chicken barbecue Tuesday in the late afternoon and evening. The barbecue brings hundreds of pounds of chicken into contact with some of the longest barbecue pits in southeast Iowa.

Guiter is hoping for good weather. When that happens the smell of roasting chicken fills the downtown area and helps draw people to the Oktoberfest tent. He should get it, too. Current forecasts show cool, dry weather through late this week.

The Oktoberfest tent, more frequently called the beer tent, officially opens Wednesday morning. It remains open until midnight each night through Sunday. The tent is the hub for Oktoberfest events, including music.

Guiter says there will be a couple new acts this year. He is particularly excited about Small Town Superheroes, an act that has performed in Ottumwa but is making its first Oktoberfest appearance.

“They come highly recommended, so I’m looking forward to hearing them perform,” he said.

Guiter thinks the beer tent will have a different flavor this year — literally. The tent’s floor is usually covered in sawdust. That hasn’t changed. But all suppliers had this year was walnut sawdust instead of a blend of everything cut at a lumber mill.

When Guiter went to see if the sawdust needed drained after rains on Thursday and Friday, he noticed a distinct walnut scent in the air. He’s curious whether it will persist through the week.

Chuck Osing is this year’s grand marshal for the parade that kicks off at 10 a.m. Saturday. The parade is sanctioned as a high school band competition and draws nearly two dozen bands every year. It also has dozens of floats from different community organizations.

The popular Kiddie Parade is at 6 p.m. Friday, with costumed kids lining up at Washington and Main streets to start the parade.

Not everything is centered on downtown this year. Guiter said the traveling version of Arlington National Cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknowns will be at Ottumwa Park on Friday and Saturday near the veterans’ memorial.

Matt Milner can be reached at (641) 683-5359 or via e-mail at mwmilner@mchsi.com