FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Olga Bof, Founder/Executive Director, Keep Saint Petersburg Local
813-500-7708 / keepsaintpetersburglocal@gmail.com
WHAT:
7th Annual LOCALTOPIA, “A Community Celebration of All Things Local”
WHEN:
Saturday, February 22, 2020 | 10 am to 5 pm (Rain Date: February 29, 2020)
WHERE:
Williams Park, 330 2nd Avenue North, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 Plus Streets Closed for Festival:NEW FOR 2020: Expansion on 3rd Street by one whole city block - will now be closed from 1st to 3rd Avenues North (see more details below)
2nd Avenue between 3rd & 4th Streets North
“Old Bus Lane” on 4th Street North
Free Bike Valet
WHO:
Organized by Keep Saint Petersburg Local as a 8-Year Anniversary Celebration,
Presented by Happy Feet Plus
COST:
FREE* family-friendly festival *[$5 Suggested (Minimum) Donation]
*Not* pet-friendly since 2016 due to large crowds. Because we love our furry friends, we want to ensure that they (and our human friends) stay safe, so we request that attendees please leave pets at home.
MORE INFO: KeepSaintPetersburgLocal.org/Localtopia (Facebook event link HERE)
The Independent Business Alliance, Keep Saint Petersburg Local (KSPL), is proud to bring back LOCALTOPIA, voted “Best Festival,” to Williams Park for its 7th year. LOCALTOPIA, already St. Pete’s largest “Community Celebration of All Things Local,” will have even more local goodness in 2020, as it is expanding its footprint by one whole city block, and adding a second stage! The expansion not only makes this year’s festival the biggest LOCALTOPIA ever staged, with over 250 of our city’s favorite independent businesses and community organizations participating as vendors, but it will also make it one of the biggest events in our area! That growth, considering it is the only event that exclusively showcases St. Pete’s independent businesses, is a testament to the impact that KSPL has had on the city. As the Alliance has helped to start and grow many of the participating businesses, fittingly,
LOCALTOPIA also serves as KSPL’s 8th anniversary celebration.
The expansion takes place down 3rd Street North, which has been closed between 1st and 2nd Avenues since the 2016 festival. For 2020, 3rd Street will now be closed between 1st and 3rd Avenues. The added block will be known as the “New to LOCALTOPIA” Block, featuring vendors that have never participated at the festival before. As St. Pete continues to grow, more businesses have wanted to be part of LOCALTOPIA, which showcases the best of our city, all in one place. A second stage has also been added to this year’s festival, which will be known as the “Visit St. Pete/Clearwater (VSPC) Street Stage.” Visit St. Pete/Clearwater is a Platinum Sponsor of this year’s event (see other sponsors below), and will have a presence on the “New to LOCALTOPIA” Block. The additional stage allows for more performers to participate too. In addition to the Williams Park Bandstand and the VSPC Street Stage’s musical lineups, LOCALTOPIA will feature performances by artists associated with The Palladium.
As more local breweries have opened/will be opening, LOCALTOPIA will also have more breweries participating this year. To ensure there is enough draft beer to quench the attendees’ local thirst, a draft beer truck has been added to 2nd Avenue North. Volunteers associated with PARC will be pouring popular local beers from the truck as soon as the festival begins. Starting at 12 pm, a dozen of our local breweries will start pouring, from their individual booths, their own special brews, found only at their tap rooms. In addition to the Local Thirst Stations dotted around the festival, where local canned beer, and wine is sold, festival-goers can also enjoy Prosecco, hard-seltzer, and cider by visiting the “Bubble Room,” in front of the Williams Park Bandstand. A new “Mimosa Bar” can be found by the VSPC Street Stage, hosted by Sipping Nomads, which will be serving from its mobile boutique trailer until 3 pm.
Major Sponsors:
Presented By: Happy Feet Plus | City of St. Petersburg Co-Sponsored Event | Platinum Sponsors: Visit St. Pete/Clearwater | Bayfront Health St. Petersburg (Will also be providing the First Aid Station)
Sponsored By: 1701 Central / Denmon Pearlman / Freedom Bank / La Budde & Sons / Suncoast Credit Union | Stage Sponsor: Hideaway Cafe
Festival Features:
- MAKERS & MERCHANTS: Art & Handcrafted Goods, Artisanal & Plant-Based Food & Beverages, Body/Self-Care, Books, Clothing & Accessories, Home Decor, Jewelry, Pet, Plants & Plant-Based Products, Vintage, Vinyl & Much More! (Find all the Vendors HERE)
- VILLAGES: Arts Village | Family Village | Health & Wellness Village | #AllThingsPlants Village (Learn more about the Villages HERE)
- EAT, DRINK & PLAY LOCAL: 4th Street: Food Truck Rally Alley | 2nd Avenue: Restaurant Row + Beer Truck + Local Breweries Pouring Their Own Brews + Games (Find all the Vendors HERE)
- 3RD STREET (Between 1st and 2nd Avenues): Boutiques | Vendors on Wheels | DJ | Literary Corner | Skate | Street Fun
- 3RD STREET EXPANSION (Between 2nd and 3rd Avenues): One More City Block with 60+ “NEW TO LOCALTOPIA” Vendors + NEW SECOND STAGE, the “Visit St. Pete/Clearwater Street Stage” on 3rd Street (Find all the Vendors HERE)
- LIVE LOCAL MUSIC on the Williams Park Bandstand + NEW SECOND STAGE, the “Visit St. Pete/Clearwater Street Stage” on 3rd Street (View the Lineup HERE)
- ENGAGING ACTIVITIES for All Ages, Free Demos & Crafts, “Biggest Local Raffle,” Live Screen Printing, Photo Booth and More Surprises!
Founder/Executive Director, Olga Bof, says, “We could not be any more excited about this year’s LOCALTOPIA! Each year the festival has evolved, so it’s never the same experience as the previous year, but we’ve always strived to make it even better than any prior LOCALTOPIA. The 3rd Street Expansion has been discussed with the City of St. Petersburg’s Park & Recreation Department since we held our 2018 fest. It has pained us to have to turn away businesses that have wanted to participate, but for which we didn’t have room, with what has been the current footprint since 2017. We are so thrilled to be able to grow the festival for 2020, help grow even more local businesses, and put on what has become one of the biggest events in our area. It’s also wonderful to be able to point our community to even more of our local gems, as they need our support now more than ever.
We couldn’t be prouder that LOCALTOPIA has become such an eagerly-anticipated annual event, winning awards, and now appearing on “must-do” lists for the whole state of Florida!
It is also an honor to have Visit St. Pete/Clearwater with us this year. To be the organization that puts on the event that showcases the best of our city, and is its biggest “Community Celebration of All Things Local” is a dream come true!
About Keep Saint Petersburg Local:
Keep Saint Petersburg Local is a non-profit organization, affiliated with the American Independent Business Alliance, working to build a thriving local economy and a unique community. The Alliance does this by nurturing connections for and acting as the voice of locally-owned, independent businesses and by raising awareness of the importance of buying local.
About Local Businesses:
Independent, locally-owned businesses are essential to a vital local economy and community character. They use the goods and services of other local businesses. They’re owned by our friends and neighbors, or maybe even you (they employ our friends and neighbors too). Community-serving businesses are the backbone of local economies, civic life, local charities and wealth creation for millions of citizens, as well as a training ground for future generations of entrepreneurs.
The problem is that today, independent businesses face unprecedented competition from larger chain competitors, internet merchants and franchises that enjoy national or international branding power and major economies of scale. As a result, community-based businesses comprise a smaller portion of our economy than ever before. We’ll lose much more than places to shop, dine or do business if we allow current trends to continue.
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Olga Bof, Founder/Executive Director
Keep Saint Petersburg Local
813-500-7708
KeepSaintPetersburgLocal@gmail.com
http://www.keepsaintpetersburglocal.org
http://www.facebook.com/keepsaintpetersburglocal
http://www.instagram.com/keepstpetelocal/