We’re well into April and May isn’t far away. That means that our events on The Ave are starting to crank up—slowly, at first, and then the pace picks up.
Later this month, as I mentioned a couple of columns ago, will be our Arbor Day celebration, on Friday, April 29. We’re going to plant the tree that day at 1 p.m., in the downtown mini-park on the southeast corner of Landis Avenue and the Boulevard. It is the 150th anniversary of the first Arbor Day. The Vineland Environmental Commission helps out with this event and, this year, the fourth grade class from the Gloria M. Sabater Elementary School will also be taking part. We’re inviting dignitaries from city, county, and state government. This occasion, however, means much more than the planting of a tree. It’s part of an initiative to plant many more trees in and around center city Vineland. It’s part of a multi-pronged beautification project about which you’ll be reading more in the weeks and months to come.
We move then into May and our second Crafts and Antiques Show on The Ave (on the 600 block with parking available in city lots on Wood Street and Elmer, behind the Landis Marketplace). This will take place on Saturday, May 7 (rain date: Sunday, May 8), from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. We’re working with a firm that has a large database of crafters and antique dealers. This will be a juried show with the firm and Main Street Vineland taking part in the participant selection process. Merchants on The Ave are also being invited to participate in the sidewalk sale aspect of the event. The response from our first show last November was such that we’ve brought it back and, with favorable spring weather, we anticipate a great turnout. These shows attract a good number of vendors and interested parties who come to look for fine crafts and antiques. We’re proud to add this as another strong part of our calendar of events. With the spring weather, take advantage of the walking trails.
Cruise Down Memory Lane and the Running The Ave 5K come the following month—on June 11 and 26, respectively —and I’ll have more on them in a later column. Meanwhile, come out and enjoy!
***
The next of our quarterly team meetings will be that of our Design Team this Thursday, April 14. That team, as I said last week, works to make The Ave look the best it can be by enhancing its physical appearance. Some mural projects are being planned—part of our Urban Canvases on The Ave Mural Project—as well as other beautification projects. It’s also responsible for the Arbor Day commemoration mentioned earlier.
All our teams will be meeting on successive Thursdays this month, at 12 p.m., at the Main Street Vineland office, 603 E. Landis Ave. You can join in person or, letting us know in advance so we can send you the link, virtually on Zoom.
***
Main Street Vineland is here to help. We pass important business information along to our businesses every Wednesday, in the 9 a.m. hour, and on SNJ Today POP FM 99.9, and Comcast Channel 22.
