 As the Lions began to prepare for the festival, they invited representatives of other local organizations to participate, and approximately thirty groups were represented at the next planning meeting.Amid sketches of suggested fountains, planters, speaker-band platforms, and general Old World scenic settings, the delegates chose the name "Project LIFT"; the latter word was meant to be an acronym for "Little Italy Festival Town" as well as indicating the delegates' hope that the festival would give their community a lift.Soon after this meeting, the group incorporated as "LIFT, Inc." The festival has endured into the 2010s; annual attendance typically varies between sixty thousand and eighty thousand.