Food, music, camaraderie and community will again take center stage along Sarnia’s storied Mitton Street, as the neighborhood is set to hold its fourth annual Mitton Village Block Party on Saturday, Aug. 27.
From 10 am to 4 pm, members of the public are being invited to have a heaping helping of Mitton Village hospitality, taking part in a free, family-friendly festival that will feature live music, kids’ activities, art and scores of vendors selling a variety of wares.
Josh Walters, one of the many organizers and founders of the annual event, said that the original purpose of the block party – which kicked off in 2019 and attracted over 500 people – was to simply get residents out and about to meet neighbours.
“We wanted to showcase the businesses here, but a lot of it was just the idea of neighbors coming together to do something on our own, something grassroots and activating unused space, such as the municipal parking lot,” he said.
“Originally we were just thinking ‘let’s just put on something by the neighborhood for the neighborhood’. That’s what block parties are all about – celebrating where you live, celebrating your neighbors and trying to foster connections among people.”
Though the pandemic threw a wrench in their plans, the block party still took place in 2020 and 2021, Walters said.
“We figured that something was better than nothing, so in 2020 we did some sidewalk sales, just to show signs of life during that difficult time,” he said. “Last year was a return to the full capacity block party, which was pretty cool.”
This year’s Mitton Street fete will have eight bands playing at the municipal parking lot and all sorts of engaging activities for visitors of all ages, Walters said.
“Basically we try and do the things that bring people together, which are usually food, music, art and kids’ activities,” he said. “It’s all free – obviously you can buy things from vendors, but it’s just good family-friendly fun. And this year we’ll be closing down part of Mitton Street specifically for vendors.”
The fourth anniversary of the Mitton Village Block Party was made possible only due to the hard work and commitment of a coalition of local residents and business owners, who are actively trying to lift the community up and promote the many positive changes the neighborhood has undergone in past years, Walters said.
More neighborhoods in Sarnia should follow suit and host their own block parties, he added. It would greatly benefit the city as a whole.
“I want to emphasize that I’m not the only organizer – we have a sort of unofficial citizens collective here in Mitton Village, just a good dozen participants who are putting in lots of hours, faithfully organizing and nurturing this block party and a lot of the credit is due to them, the neighbors and the ordinary citizens around here,” he said.
“I really believe that every neighborhood could do something like this – that’s one of the big things we’re trying to emphasize. It would be amazing if every neighborhood could do something like this – they deserve it.”
For more information about the Mitton Village Block Party, visit their Facebook page.