BY MIKE WARREN
MARSHFIELD: In real estate, location is the name of the game. When it comes to outdoor festivals, Mother Nature reigns supreme. Hub City Days organizers could argue they had both on their side for this year’s event.
Dressed in all her princess regalia, 3-year-old Rose Jochman of Marshfield suddenly realizes she’s surrounded by true royalty as she poses for a photo with Haley Sternitzky and Jr. Jessica Lindow “The most beautiful of the fair”. Rose was enjoying the Family Zone as part of Hub City Days.
Main Street Marshfield’s annual Midsummer Party July 29-30 in the “City in the Center” brought thousands of fun-seekers to “The Hub” with live music, a huge car show, a family-friendly with bounce houses and games for kids, Brew Fest, a beer garden, food trucks, shopping and more, with the lion’s share of activities taking place on a mostly sunny and warm Saturday, July 30.
“We were very happy with the weather, first of all. It was a blessing,” said Kaelie Gomez, Executive Director of Main Street Marshfield. “Also, it was great to see the live music that we brought throughout the day. I think the (Wenzel family) plaza, for the Hub City days, was the busiest we’ve seen it consistently,” Gomez added. “We usually have a rush at night on the main strip , but this year we brought more live music throughout the day, and that really allowed people to relax on the grass. We’re also very happy with the change to move the family area from the library parking lot to Veterans Park, providing shade for families and a little more balance of activities, reserving both ends of the car show and including more of our business district.”
The main attraction of the Hub City Days was the annual car show. Gomez said she quickly ran out of her 800 registration forms and this year’s event was an all-time record.
“After the pandemic, we were expecting a very big year in 2021,” Gomez said. “It ended up being more of a typical year, with that 500-600 car entry range. We had over 800 cars this year, and it was amazing,” he added. “Seeing it move two blocks further than it’s ever been was really, really fun for us.”
The Hub City Days Car Show stretches over 10 blocks along S. Central Avenue and also along parts of several side streets.
Live entertainment, the beer garden and the Hub City Brew Fest at the Wenzel Family Plaza were also big hits.
“We would really like to see Friday night shopping and dining grow,” Gomez added. “We have some very active shops that took advantage of the closure of the streets on Friday night (July 29). Uptown Coffee and Good Day Sunshine (Record Shop) partnered to bring Joe G. to the streets, and they brought couches and tables, and made it like a street lounge from 5 to 7 on Friday, and that was a lot of fun . . We also had other businesses open and hope we can continue to grow this Friday night event and celebrate local shopping and dining, while enjoying the car-free street.”
Saturday’s Main Street events also included the “Be Strong for a Cause” charity competition, which served as a fundraiser for Marshfield Area Special Olympics.
