Rise Hosts Third Annual Rise Up Festival – Celebrating Revitalization in Washington Avenue Historic District
Rise Community Development is producing a one day free street festival to celebrate revitalization in St. Louis. The festival, scheduled for August 21, 2015 on Washington Avenue between 16th and 17th Streets, will kick-off at 4 PM and end at 11 PM.
The event will include live entertainment featuring the Dirty Muggs, the Jeramiah Johnson Band, and the Bottoms Up Blues Gang. Tom “Papa” Ray will emcee the event and Alexsis Tucci will DJ. The Blues Society of St. Louis and STLBlues.net are once again partners in the event. Also featured will be fire dancers and roaming entertainers. The Kids Carnival Area will have games, a hula-hoop workshop, and face painting.
The Downtown St. Louis Restaurant Association will be providing a generous sampling of food from local business owners and Urban Chestnut Brewing Company will provide the microbrew. Other local organizations will be showcasing their programs such as CityArchRiver and the Downtown YMCA. A juried fine arts and crafts show managed by Cultural Festivals (founders and managers of the Saint Louis Art Fair) will feature local fine artists competing for best in show and selling their work.
“With our Rise Up Festival we focus attention on urban revitalization and the importance of neighborhood and community development to the region as a whole,” said Stephen Acree, President of Rise. “We know, and we want others to know, that having strong, economically diverse, livable and thriving neighborhoods is a very important part of our whole regional economic growth agenda.”
About Rise (www.risestl.org/) is a nonprofit organization that connects key groups working to revitalize communities and neighborhoods in the St. Louis area. Rise develops affordable market-rate housing in partnership with community development corporations, particularly in neighborhoods with the potential to enhance economic diversity. Since 2000, Rise has helped secure $560 million in funding and support for redevelopment projects in area neighborhoods.
