By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce wants people to come explore the parkway system this summer as Parties on the Parkway returns.
Chamber spokesperson Kristi Bailey says Parties on the Parkway is a live concert series
"That's open to the public, that gets people out along our 26-mile parkway system," Bailey tells KFEQ News. "So, the first one is May 8th."
Bailey says every year the chamber tries to change the lineup of music that performs at each concert
"This year especially, because this year the St. Joseph Symphony is going to be one of the bands, and we've never done anything like that," Bailey explains. "So that will be very interesting."
Bailey says the feedback they get shows that people loving hearing a variety of types of music at each part of the parkway, starting with the south end
"They seem to like country, so we always usually start with country down there by Benton High School," Bailey says. "Then we move from the south end up through the parkway system and we end up north, so country and then June we're doing the Jason and Brandon duo and they're a pop variety."
Bailey says people can be intimidated by the parkway system, and the concert series is designed to get people to come and enjoy it
"A lot of people get in the habit of they go to work and they go home, or they go to the grocery store and they go home, but a lot of people don't really explore our city," Bailey says. "So that's one of the good things about Parties on the Parkway, it gets people maybe someplace they've never been before."
The first concert will be held at southwest parkway and King Hill Drive on May 8th, featuring country music from The Dirty Bourbon Band. A full schedule for Parties on the Parkway is below:
May 8: The Dirty Bourbon Band (Country) at SW Parkway & King Hill Drive (Rain Date is May 15)
June 12: Jason & Brandon Duo (Pop Variety) at SW Parkway & 28th Street (Rain Date is June 19)
July 10: Fast Times (80s) at SW Noyes & Messanie, Parkway A (Rain Date is July 17)
August 14: Saint Joseph Symphony (Jazz, Pops, & Light Classical) at Corby Pond (Rain Date is August 21)
September 11: Soca Jukebox (Soul Calypso & Reggae) at Remington Nature Center (Rain Date is September 18)
You can follow Matt on X @KfeqMatt and St. Joseph Post @StJosephPost.