STAFF PHOTO DAVID FRANK DEMPSEY
A crowd flows back and forth along Block Avenue listening to live music, sampling food, checking out merchandise and services at stages and booths during the annual Block Street Block Party in Fayetteville, Ark. Sunday, May 20, 2012. Proceeds from the block party go to local charities ands for improvements along the avenue.
In the wee hours on the morning of Sunday, May 22, around 4 a.m. or so, festival organizers and volunteers will begin setting up live music stages, decorations and vendor booths for the 6th annual Block Street Block Party.
Once it starts at noon, organizers expect about 10,000 or so attendees throughout the day until it ends at dark.
If you’ve never experienced Block Street Block Party, know this: it’s free to attend, full of activities to do for all ages from children’s inflatables and crafts to beer gardens and live music. In a lot of ways, it’s a highlight of everything Fayetteville and Northwest Arkansas has to offer for entertainment, and everything from the food to the bands are local.
Hannah Withers, who’s organizing the festival, said this Block Party will be the biggest and best one yet.
“I’m really excited about the zip-line,” she said. “It’s going to be on Center Street crossing over Block Avenue. I think that’s going to be a huge hit. I’m super excited that the Amazeum is setting up an installation that’s a hands-on kid’s exhibit.”
STAFF PHOTO DAVID FRANK DEMPSEY
The band Swimming performs at Tables and Ale during the annual Block Street Block Party in Fayetteville, Ark. Sunday, May 20, 2012. Proceeds from the block party go to local charities ands for improvements along the avenue.
The zip-line will set up near the Bank of Fayetteville on Center, and $5 will get buy a ride over the crowd.
Also new this year will be a high heels race that will start off the event at noon. Men and women are encouraged to compete, and the race will start at the north end of the street and end at Center. Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan will commence the start of the race with a countdown. The registration fee of $10 ($8 if you’re part of a group) will go toward benefiting Magdalene Serenity House, a local nonprofit that provides aid and recovery for women who have survived lives of abuse, addiction or sex trafficking.
“I think there will be about 75 people or so in the race,” said Leah Garrett, who’s organizing the race. “Some people are dressing up for it, and most people I think are going to walk it, but I think some are planning on running. We were doing the photo shoot for the race the other day, and there was this one guy there I could tell was in it to win it.”
At 2 and 4 p.m., Terra Tots and The Mustache on the square will be hosting baby crawling races. To enter a baby, they have to be of crawling age — no surprise baby athletes, please — and you can register the day of.
The long-time favorite Waiters’ Race outside Little Bread Company will return at 3 p.m. The race will feature members of the service industry completing an obstacle course with a tray full of water cups for a cash prize.
For fans of Prince, there is going to be a “Let Purple Reign” parade led by local trumpeter Jeff Gray in memory of his funky purpleness, starting at 5 p.m. at the corner of Meadow and Block.
The Greedy Goats company will also be making their debut this year with a petting zoo at the corner of Block and Dickson Street.
One of the best parts of Block Street Block Party is the amount of local bands — 45 total — and events being put on the six event stages up and down Block. Some acts, such as The Airplanes, Basement Brew and Crescent City Combo don’t play very often, making Sunday a special chance to see them.
If 45 bands sounds like a lot, just ask Adams Collins, who’s playing in four bands that day; Dana Louise and the Glorious Birds, Trout Fishing in America, Jeff Kearney’s Call of Commotion and Arkansauce.
“I’m excited for it, I get to set up and then hang out in the same spot all day,” Collins said. “It should be super fun because each band is super different and makes me access a different set of skills for what I know about music.”
It’s also his fourth time playing the festival.
“It’s one of my favorite festivals to play at,” he said. “It’s a Sunday afternoon. I mostly play in clubs and bars. I play late at night at places that are age restricted, so it’s special to play in the middle of the day for friends and family who may not be into the bar scene.”
If you get hungry, there’s going to be several food vendors to choose from including Ramblin’ Man, LobLolly Creamery, Berry Natural, Blackboard Grocery, Lucky Luke’s BBQTrickdilly Tacos, Shakedown StrEAT, Pedal Pops, Kind Kitchen, Wood Fired Pizza as well as the regular Block Street restaurants.
As for parking, this year Fayetteville Mayor Lioneld Jordan has declared that parking will be free all day Sunday in the downtown entertainment/Dickson district for the event. This will only apply to city owned lots, so keep an eye out for where you park.
There’s even more things going on we haven’t gotten to yet, but plan on being surprised. Keep an eye on the weather forecast, apply sunscreen, stay hydrated, and join in the fun this Sunday.
