MOUNT VERNON – Ariel-Foundation Park will host the annual July Fourth Celebration with Parrots of the Caribbean as the headlining musical act, followed by fireworks presented by the city of Mount Vernon.
The fireworks are expected to start around 10 p.m. They will be preceded by a concert at the Ariel-Foundation Park Schnormeier Event Center (SEC) at 10 Pittsburgh Ave., with the doors opening at 5 p.m. for visitors to find a space using their own chairs. McLennon, a Beatles tribute band, will open the concert at 5:30 p.m., followed by the Sirens Duo, an R&B-blues-country act, at 6:15 p.m. Headliners Parrots of the Caribbean, a Jimmy Buffett tribute band, will take the stage at 7 p.m.
Streets will close at 4 p.m. at these locations: Norton Street; Woods Parkway westbound heading toward Harcourt Road; Pittsburgh Avenue will close to through traffic starting at 2 p.m., with local access only.
Park entrances will be open to the public at Madison Street, Pittsburgh Avenue and Harcourt Road.
Columbus Road will be closed to southbound traffic at 9:30 p.m. and will not reopen until the park clears. The Lakes area gate at Madison will be closed at 10 p.m. Simultaneously, the North Loop Path will be opened westbound, exiting at Harcourt Road.
How to exit the park changed
Traffic exiting the park area has changed from previous years. Immediately after the fireworks, traffic can exit out Pittsburgh Avenue onto Columbus Road, with motorists making either a right (south) or left (north) turn onto Columbus, with cones guiding traffic.
Motorists going west on Pittsburgh will make either a left or right turn on Harcourt Road. Any motorist exiting on North Madison Avenue must turn left only, heading into town.
The Center Lake Loop Road will open at 10:15 p.m. for westbound traffic only toward Harcourt Road. As they exit, motorists can turn left (south) or right (north). The Lakes Area gate at Madison will close at 10 p.m. Exit from the Lakes Area can only be made via the North Loop Path westward to Harcourt Road.
Traffic markers will be placed, and drivers existing must stay to the right of the markers.
Limited parking is available at Ariel-Foundation Park
Parking at Ariel-Foundation Park is first come, first served and limited, so the city suggests using public lots downtown off Gay Street and at the high school. Once lots are full, they will be closed. Limited ADA parking will be available in the park. The Urton Clockhouse parking lot off Pittsburgh Avenue by the Columbus Road entrance will be filled first, then the 20 ADA parking spots at the SEC will be used. When it fills, motorists will be directed to the lake area for other options.
Timed public parking spaces will not be ticketed.
Bring food, barbecue or buy from food trucks
Food trucks will be in the parking lot on the east side of the SEC, in the lakes area near the Kiwanis Pavilion and in the west area of the Urton Clockhouse. Food trucks will start serving at 4 p.m.
Portable restrooms will be available on the west and the north sides of the SEC parking lot, just west of the Urton Clockhouse, and outside of the Kiwanis Pavilion on the lakeside as well as the public restrooms in the pavilion.
Trash cans along the sidewalks in and around the park will be emptied throughout the day.
Park visitors can bring food and can barbecue as long as they don’t do it under any roof in the park. Alcohol is not permitted. A bar will be set up inside the SEC, where adult refreshments can be purchased from 5-9:30 p.m.
Fireworks are prohibited in all city parks. Canopies and umbrellas are allowed, but not on the grassy area outside the SEC, within 15 feet of the wire fence and not on the concrete area.
Visitors will not be allowed to sit on paved roads inside or outside the park, even with roads closed.
The city advises those who attend the fireworks display to leave their dogs at home. The sound of fireworks usually scares them. Keep them on a leash if they are taken to the park.
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