Main Street Wadsworth rolls out 2025 events schedule

PHOTO PROVIDED

Children enjoyed story time with Belle before the showing of Beauty and the Beast during January’s First Friday in downtown Wadsworth. The next First Friday event will take place Feb. 7 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. with the theme Downtown Decadence: Chocolate Edition.

 

By EMILY CANNING-DEAN

BGNN staff writer

WADSWORTH  A multitude of events have been planned for downtown Wadsworth this year as the city, in conjunction with Main Street Wadsworth, has released the schedule for 2025.

“We already had our First Friday event for January and even though it was a day where there was a lot of snowfall, it was very well attended,” said Megan Harvey, executive director for Main Street Wadsworth.

The main street organization introduced First Fridays to Wadsworth back in 2018 and has grown the program ever since. For the second year January’s theme was Movies on Main where a showing of the animated classic Beauty and the Beast took place at OJ Work Auditorium.

“We had Belle on hand at the event and it was fun to see the children dressed up,” Harvey said. “The movie we did in partnership with the Wadsworth Library and the Wadsworth Footlighters. Cambria, one of our downtown restaurants, had a Beauty and the Beast featured menu that night, the Sub Station had treats for kids and Sweets on High provided concessions for us. We found that for the colder months, it is better if we have more activities indoors.”

The next First Friday event will take place Feb. 7 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. with the theme Downtown Decadence: Chocolate Edition.

“We are very excited for that one,” Harvey said. “A lot of the downtown restaurants will have chocolate items featured on their menus and Main Street Wadsworth will be selling candy bars and a few will have golden tickets in them just like in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Those with golden tickets will win some community-based chocolate treats.”

Harvey said that favorite First Friday themes are repeated each year such as in June when First

Friday honors first responders and August which usually has an aviation theme in conjunction with Balloons Over Wadsworth. Members of the promotions committee will put their heads together to come up with some new themes each year.

“We usually start preparing for the next year in July and we will have a meeting where people can throw out any ideas for themes and activities that can goalong with them,” she said. “Then we will have a second meeting where we will start to solidify those ideas.”

While First Fridays are popular events, downtown Wadsworth will host multiple other activities including the return of the Craft and Herb festival which hasn’t taken place since the pandemic began.

The festival will take place Saturday, May 10 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. throughout the downtown area. 

“We are very excited to bring that back,” Harvey said. “There will be craft and plants and herb vendors all along the sidewalk in the downtown area.”

The Wadsworth farmer’s market will also kick off in June with local vendors in place every Saturday morning throughout the summer.

“We are also planning three Wednesday dates for the farmer’s market that will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. for people who maybe aren’t able to get to downtown on Saturday mornings,” Harvey said.

The popular Scare on the Square which includes the Thriller performance will be part of this year’s schedule, but instead of taking place on a Thursday as it did in the past, it is scheduled for Saturday Oct. 18 from 5 to 8 p.m.

“We are looking to grow the event even more,” Harvey said. “It is very popular and last year we had more than 300 zombies perform in the Thriller  dance. But we thought we would try having it on a Saturday so parents wouldn’t have to be running home after work to get their kids ready and performers might have more time to participate.”

A complete list of events can be found on the city’s website as well as Main Street Wadsworth’s website, mainstreetwadsworth.org.