By Ari Bloomekatz
Enquirer staff writer

Luis and Gloria Valencia of Deerfield Township dance at Sawyer Point Saturday. The couple is originally from Colombia. The Cincinnati Enquirer/ERNEST COLEMAN

A modest crowd salsa-danced as others ate churros and tostados Saturday at the first-ever Cincy Latino Festival held on both sides of the Ohio River.

Hector Moreno, one of the event's coordinators, said the festival was an effort to build bridges between long-time residents and Cincinnati's rapidly growing Latino population.

"Basically, the Latinos are the new neighbors in this community," Moreno said.

Staging the festival near both ends of the Purple People Bridge was intended as a metaphor for community partnership, he said.

Into the evening Saturday, Latino musicians performed merengue, Latin pop, Puerto Rican and Mexican music at Sawyer Point and Newport Festival Park on the river. Vendors sold crafts and cooks served traditional Latino foods, such as tinga, a shredded chicken dish with sliced onions in a chipotle sauce.

Sasha Rionda, anchor of Nuestro Rincon, a Tristate Spanish-language newscast, said the exchange of culture is important.

"There's been a lot of miscommunication (between Latinos and other groups of people)," Rionda said. "The more we know about each other's cultures, the more we can get along."

Teresa Buchanan came with three of her sisters. She said her mother met her father in San Antonio, and they were among the first Latino families to settle in Middletown during the 1950s.

"It brings back memories of our heritage," Buchanan said. "We'll be here every year from now on."

Some festival-goers said they were disappointed with the turnout, saying a similar event held in June in Columbus attracted a much bigger crowd.

But most remained optimistic that the event would grow.

E-mail abloomekatz@enquirer.com