The Downtowners’
City Center Newsletter
August 30, 2012
What You Will Find…
□ 39th Annual Street Fair
□ Downtown Updates
□ Upcoming Events
□ Association News
39th Annual Downtowners Street Fair
Long Standing Event Runs Sept 14-15…
It’s the first sign of fall in our city center. Each year the Downtowners produce Street Fair. It was once the food and vendor portion of what used to be called Folkfest, a Bismarck-Mandan wide event. Folkfest spanned a couple weeks and had everything from pageants to parades and involved many organizations spearheaded by what was once separate Chambers of Commerce for each city.
Folkfest is no longer organized, but the Downtowners continued to do the Street Fair and it has become a much loved event that ushers in the fall.
This year Street Fair is full! Over 180 vendors will pack seven city blocks of Downtown Bismarck Friday Sept 14 from 10am-8pm and Saturday Sept 15 from 9am-6pm. We have veteran vendors returning, some that have been coming to the Street Fair for decades. But there is also a great crop of new and unique vendors coming to our 39th Annual Street Fair. We even have a Las Vegas food truck! Don’t forget we have inflatable games, the barrel train, and other fun art activities for the kids.
Look for a vendor map in next week’s Mandan Finder, the Sept 12 Bismarck Tribune, or starting Sept 1 our website www.downtownbismarck.com.
39 years we have all come together to see our neighbors, have some great food, peruse regional artist’s work, and celebrate the bounty of fall and harvest. We hope to see you again this year.
For more information visit www.downtownbismarck.com/street-fair.
*We still receive many calls regarding the Folkfest Parade. The parade merged with UTTC’s Parade of Champions some years ago and is held on Powwow weekend, Saturday September 8 on the usual parade route.
Downtown Updates
— Drunken Noodle and Obermiller Nelson Engineering received approval from both the Renaissance Zone Authority and Bismarck Civic Commission to be designated Renaissance Zone projects. Their applications now go to the state for approval. Drunken Noodle will be located in the new construction project by Dr. Becker at 510 E Main Ave. Obermiller Nelson will be located in the lower level of the Rainmaker Group building on the 100 block of 5th street.
— Space Aliens BBQ Pit has sold their building to a new restaurant opening in Downtown Bismarck.
— Lucky Ducks Deli & Catering received approval for their Class F-2 liquor license at the Aug 28 commission meeting. Lucky Ducks will be taking over the space formerly occupied by Space Aliens BBQ Pit on 3rd Street. Find out more about them on Facebook.
— The Bismarck City Commission was briefed on the potential new addition to the Bismarck Civic Center. The addition would be convention and meeting space and would double the size of the existing facility. The commission approved the ballot language for November. The ballot decision will be whether or not to approve an increase in the visitor’s tax to pay for the expansion.
— Kittson & 3rd, a boutique in Grand Forks, is planning to open a second location in Downtown Bismarck on 4th Street. Find out more about them on Facebook.
— Nicilyn’s, a boutique selling baby goods and kid’s goods, will be opening at 111 S 5th St in the former Collector’s Universe space. Find out more about them on Facebook.
— Fiesta Villa Restaurant in the historic depot has new ownership. Pete Conlin took over management/ownership at the end of July.
— The Bismarck Parking Authority is offering free evening parking from 4pm to 2am daily through the end of the year. With all the new activity and nightlife in Downtown Bismarck, the ramps will allow the public to enjoy the city center and not have to look for street parking.
How the After Hour Complementary Parking Works: Use the entrance to the 3rd & Main Ramp on 3rd Street. Pull into the ramp and pull a time stamped ticket. The arm will raise and allow the car through to park. When exiting the ramp, simply use the hourly lane and deposit your ticket in the slot, the arm will already be raised to allow the cars to exit. There is no leeway on timing. If you enter at 3:59pm or exit at 2:01am, the customer will be charged the normal hourly rate.
Upcoming events
What’s Shakin Downtown…
Sept 6-9
United Tribes Powwow
Parade Sept 8
Sept 7
BAGA Opening Reception
L.A.Huffman Photographs
Sept 14-15
39th Annual Downtowners’ Street Fair
Downtown Bismarck
Sept 15
Kroll’s Marathon
7:30am
Sept 22
Dakota Stage Present’s
Living Masterpieces
Sept 22-23
Applefest
Buckstop Junction
Downtowners’ Association News
Organization and member news …
Welcome to our Newest Member Bek Communications!
You can find all of our member’s information at: www.downtownbismarck.com
□ Member Baumstark Braaten Law Partners has moved to 109 N 4th Street from the Historic Tribune building. The Barrister Building was once the home of Woolworth’s in Bismarck on the corner of 4th andMain Ave.
□ Member Bismarck Cancer Center is hosting their annual Applefest event September 22-23. Join them for a fun-filled, family event at Buckstop Junction. You will find kids’ carnival, arts and crafts, petting zoo, food vendors, live music, bake sale, silent auction and more! Saturday: 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. — Sunday: 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Admission is $7 adults; $4 seniors 60+; $3 Teens & Students; Children 6 and under Free. Proceeds from Applefest support the Bismarck Cancer Center Foundation, meeting the needs of Bismarck Cancer Center patients.
□ Member Starion Financial hosted their Community Night on August 17th to huge crowds! Free admission to Dakota Zoo,SuperSlide Park, and a picnic meal for everyone. Well over 2,000 people attended. Starion’s Community Night was a thank you to the volunteers in the communities they serve. Well done!
Please send all member business news and events to: kate@downtownbismarck.com.
Check the Downtown Business Association’s websites for updated news and events www.downtownbismarck.com or www.bismarckribfest.com.
Please forward this on to people interested in Downtown news!