Strolling. Socializing. Sipping. Sampling. Serenading.
Thousands of people attended the first Party in the Park of 2014 last Friday and the second one is set for tonight, July 18, in Chilliwack Central Park.
"Opening night was great!" said Downtown Chilliwack BIA executive director Kyle Williams. "We have tried some new things for this year, but I think we were able to maintain or even improve upon the fun, family atmosphere that people have come to expect from Party in the Park."
Another great PITP entertainment lineup is set to take the Chances Community stage Friday, July 18. It runs from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and kicks off with a dance performance by Project Dance, and followed by live music by No Time Flat, Aerophonics (feat. Jake Holmes, Tristan Martin and Kyler Pierce), The Rub (feat. Stuart Young, Peter Kilgour, Craig Scott), Head over Heels (feat. Kevin Ault), Clarence (feat. Chad Blackey and Cozy F. Pines.)
The last two dates are August 15 and August 22.
It has become the most popular downtown event the community has ever seen.
PITP is supported by more than 300 downtown Chilliwack businesses. The BIA proudly coordinates the Party and other events, such as the Fortin’s Village Classic Car Show, as a way to thank the community for their unwavering support.
The kid-friendly zone is larger than ever for one thing.
"Our O’Connor Family Fun Zone featured more activities for children than in previous years, such as a second bouncy castle and extra balloon artists, though some lineups were unavoidable," he noted.
Hopefully PITP will bring some new visitors to the area, as well as encouraging the locals.
"It is all about creating an experience for our visitors."
Some haven't been downtown in years, or maybe they never checked out the newest stores.
"We had a lot of highlights from our first night, but mostly it was nice to see the success of the various components," said Williams. "Trevor McDonald did a fantastic job not only with hosting but arranging the talent on the Chances Community Stage.
"It was great to have him back on stage doing what he does so well for this community."
The new Mill Street 'marketplace' sponsored by Great Canadian Oil Change and Winmar, saw crowds moseying down the recently repaved and reconfigured street. The Murray Honda Food Fair on Wellington Ave was packed with many great food truck sampling opportunities.
It's hard to count all the PITP revellers.
"The revamped layout really helped to spread foot traffic out, so it was difficult to gauge the actual number of people as there weren’t large clusters in many areas," said Williams. "The overall volume of people was tremendous and I have heard estimates from 5,000 to 6,000 people, and others figuring it was probably closer to 8,000."
The second PITP is July 18, and the theme is Tropical Night sponsored by Envision Financial. That means get out the grass skirts, and Hawaiian shirts.
"So we are hoping everyone will come dressed in their best tropical summer wear.
"Since we only have four dates this summer, and this will be our last one in July, we are expecting another good crowd."