AN ESTIMATED 15,000 to 20,000 people flocked to College Avenue on Sunday to enjoy live music, fashion, food, drink and family-oriented entertainment at the annual Out & About in Rockridge ‘08 street fair.

The Rockridge District Association sponsored the event for the first time this year, bringing local merchants out into the street to showcase Rockridge’s distinct combination of culinary and stylistic services that make it a commercial district to watch in the East Bay region. Over half a mile of College Avenue was blocked off for street strolling, highlighted by a chef’s stage featuring local eateries and a fashion runway where the street’s clothing and hair salon vendors strutted their stuff.

With the local and national economies in bad shape, it’s the perfect time for a street fair, according to Tina Aiyer, a partner at the Rockridge District Association.

“In these times, a street festival is more successful,” Aiyer said. “People aren’t vacationing abroad. They’re doing more local things that the whole family can enjoy. And it’s free — it’s cheaper to go to a fair and buy a necklace and enjoy live music than it is to go to Hawaii.”

Aiyer said the attendance surpassed the association’s expectations and exceeded last year’s number by several thousand.

Nate and Emma Laskin have attended the street fair for the past four years running.

“It gets bigger every year and better and better,” Nate Laskin said, content and sedentary on a cube of hay outside of Cactus Taqueria on College Avenue at Shafter and enjoying the clear-blue sky.

While the Rockridge couple came out for the food from the scores of local restaurants that set up booths on the blocked-off section of College Avenue between Claremont and Hudson, their children enjoyed kid-friendly entertainments like three themed bounce houses, pumpkin painting, cupcake decorating and a train ride.

Across the street from where the couple sat with daughters Emma, 6, and Hailey, 2, two pigs roasted on spits outside Oliveto, which offered up pulled pork sandwiches to passersby who toured the street for all-local eating options and a host of outside merchants to boot.

The fair played host to a diverse selection of merchants and service options beyond those who rent real estate on the bustling thoroughfare — everything from a “wellness tent” with crystal therapy and massage to a row of eco-friendly businesses from across the region, many of them passing out promotional materials that proved their greenness.

A chef’s stage at the corner of Ocean View hosted culinary showcases all day long from familiar local favorites like Zachary’s and Pasta Pomodoro, as well as a special contribution from a local television program. Dishes fair-goers may have learned to prepare include spinach and mushroom deep dish pizza, spice-dusted bittersweet brownies, risotto frutti de mare, prawns with ancho chile and avocado-corn salsa, and mac and cheese soup. Elsewhere, food booths offered up grilled delectations made to order.

Thirsty trollers had their options of how to wash down all that gustatory delight. Scores of vendors offered wine and beer selections.

“This is way bigger than last year,” said Jodie Stelzriede of sports bar George and Walt’s.

The beer business is benefited greatly by the fair, Stelzriede reported. Her only grievance? The street shouldn’t close down so early.

“Six is a little early,” she said. “It’d be nice if it could go later — maybe until sunset.”