Staycation all I ever wanted! Sometimes the best getaway is a staycay. Save the gas and skip that kid kicking your seat on the plane in lieu of an OOO flex at some of the best hotels around (we see you Michelin-certified The Longleaf Hotel!). We rest our (suit)case.
Here, a dozen unrivaled must-do’s to build a staycay around during the 12 weeks of summer. We rest our (suit)case.
Dueling Dinosaurs Channel your inner Ross Geller and ~pivot~ your staycay around this epic exhibit 67 years in the making digging into the world’s duo of fave dinos. Free, ongoing, naturalsciences.org
Jaguar Bolera The long-anticipated adult playground will no doubt have you making moves like jaguar over to Raleigh Iron Works to balance Top Chef eats and a roster of duckpin bowling, darts, karaoke and more. Daily, jaguarbolera.com
Rooftop Tour Alexa, play “Rooftops” by Wiz Khalifa. … Get high in the best way by rooftop hopping across Raleigh’s elevated roster—from La Terrazza and The Willard to 10th & Terrace and beyond.
Spark Golf Happy Hour If you’re lookin’ to ~par-tee~, swing into Spark Golf—the hot new all-skill-level happy hour activity teeing up across the Triangle on the daily sans the country club membership. Ongoing, spark.golf
Food Truck Rodeo Summer fitness? More like ~fitness~ as much food in your mouth (!) via a scad of savory and sweet food trucks (and trailers!) on Fayetteville Street. Stretchy pants encouraged. Free, Aug. 25, shoplocalraleigh.org
Sarah Sherman “What, are you obsessed with me?” You will be as SNL’s quirky “Sarah Squirm” promises to make your eyes bug out as she brings her body horror comedy live. July 18–20, goodnightscomedy.com
Live After 5 Live After 5 is in her queen era (!)…. And you’re gonna wanna “kiss beneath the milky twilight… out on the moonlit floor” as ’90s alt queens Sixpence None the Richer light up the night live—NTM a roster of artists tribute-ing legends from T. Swift to the Queen of Country Dolly Parton herself. Summer lovin’ indeed. Free, July 31 & Aug. 28, downtownraleigh.org
NCSU Home Opener There’s always next this year. The Pack is BACK at Carter-Finley to cripple the Catamounts in their campaign to finally reach champ status. Aug. 29, gopack.com
Opera under the stars NCMA Skip the flight and ~rome~ to NCMA’s Museum Park for a breathtaking backdrop serving the soaring arias and enchanting melodies of opera’s most memorable masterpieces. It’s giving Italian coliseum vibes—and, baby, we’ll be counting stars. Sept. 12, ncopera.org
Bull Durham, A New Musical If you’re all about that base, prop up for this new musical bringing the Academy Award-winning classic back home (fun fact: Scenes from the film were shot at Mitch’s Tavern). Sept. 10–22, theatreraleigh.com
Hopscotch Music Festival Oh, hoppy day(s)! Venture Downtown for a rhythmic romp of jams at City Plaza and Moore Square stages—plus late-night sets, comedy shows, day parties, local vendors and more. Sept. 5–7, hopscotchmusicfest.com
You can’t buy happiness, but you can buy tickets—or just show up when it’s free. And you’re gonna wanna show up and show out for a host of these hot events. Here, our curated list of the top 50 must-go Raleigh events of the next 365 days—from now through March 2024. We chatted up top city organizers to vet THE hottest tickets in town—like, say, the return of Live After 5 (!) this month. So grab your planners or phones and lock in your faves. Do it for the mems.
50TH ANNIVERSARY OF HIP-HOP MUSIC CELEBRATION “Ain’t nuttin’ but a G thang, baby.” Dance in the streets—literally—to fete 50 years of hip-hop on Fayetteville Street with this daylong street party, complete with a Family Village, live beats to honor local hip-hop pioneers, plus performances from big names like Terminator X and Petey Pablo. And—wait for it—don your best kicks and peep yourself on the Jumbotron as Raleigh rolls out the red carpet for the Sneaker Ball. Pro tip: Until May 1, lend lore to City of Raleigh Museum’s campaign to collect iconic hip-hop photos connected to Raleigh + NC. “La-di-da-di, we like to party…” Aug. 12, cityofraleighmuseum.org
Brewgaloo (Garrett Poulos)
Feast on This Feelin’ upsetti? Then eat some spaghetti, sip some Italian wine and slurp a few scoops of gelato as you stroll the DTR streets and celebrate Italian heritage/culture via the Festa Italiana Fifth Annual Cultural Celebration. It’s got a pisa our hearts! … Meanwhile, hops heads can brew up some spirited fun on Fayetteville Street via Brewgaloo (April 21–22)—aka the country’s second-largest beer fest feat. 110+ brews, plus bands, vendors, food trucks and more—while those hankering to satiate their sweet tooth can head to City Plaza for NC Sugar Rush (May 28). Here we crumb! festaraleigh.com; shoplocalraleigh.org; ncsugarrush.com
Live After 5 The greatest comeback since Rihanna: Raleigh’s taking it retro by bringing back the decades-old all-the-rage free live ’80s & ’90s concert block party—which promises cross-appeal from Gen Z to Boomers (aw, the music unites us). And lemme upgrade ya! Trade those cooler cans for social district sips (fingers crossed), nosh on local food truck fare, and shop vintage clothing—and be sure to sip on the Wye Hill signature branded hard seltzer! See you at City Plaza every third Wednesday through July. Alexa, please play “Let’s Get the Party Started.” Starts April 19, downtownraleigh.org
Boylan Heights Art Walk Hype up with some Jay Z “Picasso Baby” or channel your inner Andy Warhol and while away the day going all “Viva la Vida” via Boylan Heights’ famed perennial art walk showcasing a hundred-plus local artists and craftspeople’s wares across myriad mediums on a gaggle of gorgeous neighborhood porches, yards and sidewalks.Winter tbd, boylanheights.org
Dueling Dinosaurs Rawr! Surely you won’t dino-snore during this highly anticipated years-in-the-making blast into the past—67 million years back, to be exact—highlighting the mysteries, history and research of two iconic dynamic dinos: the Triceratops and Tyrannosaurus rex. Can you dig it? Opening Dec. 2 (tentative), naturalsciences.org
Hopscotch (Michael Robson)
Jam Out We don’t sleep on live tunes. What with J. Cole’s annual Dreamville Festival (April 1–2) drawing music lovers the world over—especially thanks to this year’s star headliners Drake and Usher (“Usher, Usher, Usher…”). NTM Hopscotch’s perennial fall return to DTR (Sept. 7–9) with a slew of both recognized and up-and-coming artists—plus all the local vendors and parties for which its known, natch. And, not to pull your strings, the largest urban bluegrass festival in the world with IBMA World of Bluegrass (Sept. 26–30). dreamvillefest.com; hopscotchmusicfest.com; worldofbluegrass.org
Moonshine and Motorsports Drinking and driving merge (not at the same time)—and it’s a thing. The Moonshine and Motorsports Trail revs up on statewide speedways—and this NCMH detour into the speedhungry hoochers behind the multibillion-dollar industry is a dose of pop-history in the fast lane you’re gonna wanna make a pit stop for. Opening tbd, ncmuseumofhistory.org
Wine, Cheese & Chocolate Festival Whether you’re feeling cheesy, wine-y or just plain sweet, you’re gonna wanna belly up for Lafayette Village’s annual smorgasbord of all things wine, cheese and chocolate. Sample your way through vendors while enjoying live music and shopping—plus some sweet knowledge from the experts. Sounds gouda! April 29, lafayettevillageraleigh.com
Craig Robinson “BTB (bring that booty)” for a good time as everyone’s favorite The Office warehouse guy—NTM his roles in This Is the End and Hot Tub Time Machine—brings the funny to Raleigh. Sept. 15–17, improv.com
Moonlight in the Garden “And at last we see the light…” Only once in a blue moon are you able to meander through a magical lighted garden, roast a marshmallow or two, enjoy live jams, and sip on some warm cider on a cool November night at the JC Raulston Arboretum. How de-light-ful. Nov. 8–19, jcra.ncsu.edu
Holt Brothers Flag Football (Bray Photos)
Holt Brothers Flag Football Get a kick outta competition for a good cause? Who doesn’t. Hit the field for some Saturday game play for fun(draiser) feat. tailgating, touchdowns, tournaments and more to help local families fight cancer. Talk about teamwork! April 15, holtbrothersfoundation.org
Raleigh Dead queens, an executioner, a court of vipers and a jealous king? Yes, please. Get schooled on our fair city’s namesake Sir Walter Raleigh via this poignant biography by Raleigh’s claim to fame Ira David Wood III himself. What will Raleigh’s fate be?! June 8–18, theatreinthepark.com
The Soccer Tournament Channel your inner Ted Lasso and believe your fave team can shoot for the stars during this 32-team World Cup-style tourney consisting of group play and single elimination knockout rounds at WakeMed Soccer Park—with a winner-takes-all $1 million prize to boot. Can you kick it? June 1–4, thetournament.com
Frankenstein We all just want to be loved—even Frankenstein’s “repulsive” monster. Behold Carolina Ballet Artistic Director Zalman Raffael’s hauntingly theatrical and seductively beautiful interpretation of Mary Shelley’s classic tale, also feat. a “New Haunted Tale” choreographed by Robert Weiss. Oct. 12–29 (tentative), carolinaballet.com
Out! Raleigh Pride We’re here, we’re queer—and we’re ready to get loud and proud and paint Raleigh rainbow-colored for the 11th installment of Out! Raleigh Pride, the inclusive fam-friendly fest that promotes acceptance and diversity via a fun-filled day on Fayetteville Street with a slew of live entertainment, artists, vendors, activities, a KidsZone—and bites and brews, natch—all to benefit the LGBT Center of Raleigh. We love love! June 24, outraleigh.com
David Spade “It’s funny because it’s funny”—catch him inside DPAC for a can’t-miss laugh as the legendary comedian and actor (SNL, Grown Ups, Tommy Boy, Joe Dirt…) brings his Catch Me Inside tour to town. Life’s a garden—dig it! April 20, dpacnc.com
NC State Fair (Justin Kase Conder)
Local Festivities Oh, for the love of NC! It doesn’t get more Carolina than the Got to Be NC Festival (May 19–21)—three down-home days digging all things NC via family entertainment, agricultural shows, live music, local food and bev vendors, and more. … And we’re fairly certain you’re gonna wanna mark your cal for fried food, farm animals, games and rides galore at this year’s NC State Fair (Oct. 12–22). Pro tip: Wait at least 30 min after indulging in the likes of turkey legs, fried cookie dough and other fair fare to spike your adrenaline. ncstatefair.org; gottobencfestival.com
Kevin Nealon “I’m Kevin Nealon, and that’s news to me.” Before there was Michael Che and Colin Jost (and a cadre of other culturally iconic comics), Kevin Nealon helmed the SNL news desk delivering the wickedly funny Weekend Update from 1991–94—and now you can see him live in Raleigh. Oct. 5–7, goodnightscomedy.com
NCSU Home Opener Show up and show out for the season home opener at Carter-Finley as State pummels the Fighting Irish and sends them packing as the Whining Irish. Ayeee! #WITHSept. 9, gopack.com
Krispy Kreme Challenge “… And my stunning digestive pyrotechnics.” Take a lesson from 10 Things I Hate About You’s Cat and, well, do-nut show off your guts. Do pound 12 doughnuts, 2,400 calories and 5 miles in 1 hour as trailglazers unite annually in the name of charity for the North Carolina Children’s Hospital. February tbd, krispykremechallenge.com
Art in Bloom Hey, bloomers! The NCMA gets its annual floral transformation during this highly anticipated exhibit in which local artists recreate works found in the People’s Collection into colorful bloom-filled masterpieces. You best be-leaf it’s one for the books. March 2024 (tentative), ncartmuseum.org
Turkey Ball Without feather ado… you’re gonna wanna gobble up tix and gobble down this Italian Thanksgiving feast for the greater good via Mulino’s annual fundraiser, where your $45 ticket lets you have a ball (!) while sponsoring a local family’s Thanksgiving turkey. Gobble, gobble, good. Nov. 16, mulinoraleigh.com
Misery “I’m your No. 1 fan. There’s nothing to worry about. You’re gonna be just fine. I’ll take good care of you.” Unhinged Annie Wilkes turns true life stranger than fiction when she “rescues” (er, holds hostage) her fave novelist from a near-fatal car crash in this gripping Raleigh Little Theatre rendition of the Stephen King spine-tingling psychological thriller classic that made Kathy Bates a household (horror) name. Oct. 20–Nov. 5, raleighlittletheatre.org
Dan Soder Don’t take Soder too seriously—because he’s not. The self-dubbed “mall clown” (don’t worry—he’s “cool with it”) of, most recently, Showtime’s Billions fame (as Mafee) brings his charismatic casual style of “personal comedy” underground to Goodnights for three can’t-miss nights of funny. Aug. 24–26, goodnightscomedy.com
Summer Salute Hey, beaches! Ready to tropiclike it’s hot?! Putting the “fun” in fundraising, Raleigh’s best beach party is back courtesy of North State Bank’s 20th annual charity event. Coastal vibes are high @ North Ridge Country Club via The Embers live—plus dancing, food and waves of fun—with proceeds benefiting Transitions LifeCare. Let’s shellebrate! June 3, summersalute.com
Rock Your World For those about to rock—we salute you! Rock out for ’Merica at this 12th annual fest to benefit the U.S. Veterans Corps of Raleigh and the Hope For Haiti Foundation feat. Garland Mason, Band of Brothers, Sidewinder, the American Bombshells and other entertainment. Plus, honor the troops via wine tastings, a silent auction, liquor and food tents, a paratrooper exhibition, and more. Sept. 10, rockyourworldraleigh.com
ELF the Musical “Elves love to tell stories. I bet you didn’t know that about elves.” … No-Buddy is gonna wanna miss NC Theatre’s rendition of this feel-good Christmas classic about our fave orphaned elf’s journey to find his fam… and the true meaning of Christmas, of course. Time to embrace your inner elf! Dec. 9–17, nctheatre.com
Canes Season Opener Pucker up! Raleigh’s Bunch of Jerks take to the ice once again for another exciting season of goal-oriented competition. Stay tuned for the opposing team announcement this summer. … You know we’re all about that ice. October tbd, nhl.com
Packapalooza “We’re the red and white from State!”… Party with the Pack at NC State’s annual daylong street fest/block party feat. live music, activities, entertainment, delish fare and hundreds of vendor booths. A packed day of fun for sure (!). Aug. 26 (tentative), packapalooza.ncsu.edu
Over the Edge (Special Olympics North Carolina)
Over the Edge Calling all adrenaline junkies! The sky’s the limit for those ready to rappel down a DTR skyscraper while supporting Special Olympics North Carolina. Alexa, play “On Top of the World.”Sept. 30, sonc.net
City of Raleigh Museum 30th Anniversary Gala “G-l-a-m-o-r-o-u-s… We flyin’ first class… poppin’ Champagne” at the City of Raleigh Museum for its “pearl” anniversary. Rub shoulders with Raleighites to fete all the pearls of wisdom COR has dropped on us over the last 30 years—and cheers to 30 more.Sept. 23, cityofraleighmuseum.org
Hops for Hope Drink for the children? Twist our arms. Taste your way through 30+ special sips brewed up by local brewery and corporate team collabs to benefit Children’s Flight of Hope’s mission to provide families flights for specialized medical care. Pro tip: Be sure to sample Raleigh Mag’s curated brew in partnership with Crank Arm! Sept. 16, hopsforhope.org
Barbecue Drug intervention at the family barbecue? Beats the motel. Get the popcorn ready as the O’Mallery sibs clumsily call out sister Barbara for her out-of-hand drug habit in not one, but two family orientations—one white, one Black—to expose and juxtapose racial and family politics in this raucous and rollicking comedic affair that skewers our warped view of American family. Prepare yourself for some heat—both on and off the grill (!).Oct. 18–29, theatreraleigh.com
Artsplosure (Chris Richman)
Artsplosure Raleigh’s original and longest-running arts fest, this “artsplosion” transitions DTR into a two-day arts and culture mecca feat. a 175-countrywide-artist eclectic Art Market showcasing works across myriad mediums—plus live performances touting emerging national and regional acts, Kidsplosure, and unique installations you’ll def be drawn to. May 20–21, artsplosure.org
Kevin James: The Irregardless Tour “Safety never takes a holiday.” … Don’t miss this comedy king (of queens!) making his way to Raleigh for a night of funnies. “Grown-ups,” only. May 7, martinmariettacenter.com
Make Music Raleigh “Please don’t stop the music…” Join the global movement (1K+ cities worldwide—born 41 years ago in France) and sing and play on the streets, sidewalks and parks across Raleigh for this free live festival of music. June 21, makemusicday.org/raleighorg
Evening of Hope Go glam to give a damn. Sparkle—and spark hope—at Foundation of Hope’s annual elegant Evening of Hope Gala at the Pavilion at Angus Barn feat. a dazzling & delish multicourse dinner by Iron Chef Walter Royal with wine pairings, plus fab live and silent auctions and celeb keynote speaker (previous stars include Marie Osmond, Brooke Shields, Ashley Judd, LeAnn Rimes…), all to raise dollars, awareness and hope for—and stamp out the stigma around—mental illness. Pro tip: Up the ante by igniting hope at, well, younger gala Igniting Hope feat. live band! Sept. 13 & 14, walkforhope.com
Tried + True
Holiday events to keep your season spirited
Theatre in the Park’s A Christmas Carol 50th Anniversary Don’t be such a Scrooge. Wish a fond farewell to Ira David Wood III via this iconic musical, comedic and timely interpretation of Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas tale. December, @theatreinthepark
Chinese Lantern Festival Feast your eyes on 40+ awe-inspiring Chinese lantern displays and captivating nightly cultural performances. Glow on! Mid-November–early January, @booth_amp
First Night Raleigh Ring in the new year via DTR’s highly anticipated acorn drop, live music, fireworks and more. Here’s to 2024 (!). Dec. 31, @firstnightraleigh
DRA Tree Lighting For a tree-mendously good time, grab the fam and head to DTR’s tree lighting, also feat. local food trucks, beer and wine, and vendors (we’ll be there!)—plus photo ops with Santa (!). Nov. 17, @downtownraleighalliance
State Capitol Tree Lighting Ceremony You turn me on! Kick off the holiday season with decor, government dignitaries, sweet seasonal treats and perhaps an appearance from the jolly ’ol elf himself. December, @ncstatecapitol
Christmas Parade “Oh, my God! Santa, here?! I know him! I know him!” Spot Santa—and the others—from the streets or the couch (on ABC11) in the largest Xmas parade between DC and Atlanta. Nov. 18, @raleighchristmasparade
WRAL Nights of Lights For holiday magic served up caravan-style, grab your crew for a drive-thru light display that sleighs. Late November–late December, @wralnightsoflights
Illuminate See DTR light up (literally) for the holiday season as you stroll the streets and experience large-scale interactive and light-based art pieces. #ItsLit. Opens Dec. 1, @downtownraleighalliance
Jingle Ball Mix, mingle and chill with Kris Kringle at Capital City Clauses’ annual Jingle Ball at the Museum of Natural Sciences. Holly jolly, indeed! December, @capitalcityclauses.
Raleigh Little Theatre’s Cinderella, Holiday Musical If the shoe fits… wear it to see the fairy tale magic of Cinderella dancing the night away. Just be sure to make it home before midnight! Dec. 1–17, @rlt1936
Carolina Ballet’s The Nutcracker “Son of a nutcracker!” For an evening sure to be on pointe, nab tix to this classical Christmas performance. Let’s get crackin’. Dec. 12–24 (tentative), @carolinaballet
It’s time for Raleigh to up its game for big events.
Dorothea Dix Park likely never before saw the mass crowds that graced its green lawns April 2–3—when J. Cole’s second Dreamville Festival (this time taking place over two days) brought in 80,000 attendees from all 50 states, plus 14 countries (!), despite a three-year hiatus. Talk about a fan base.
But while most will say the festival was a great success (Ari Lennox called it “the best festival ever”—and we agree!), it had its shortcomings—the biggest of which was the lack of cell service throughout the festival grounds, and, in turn, the struggle to meet up with friends and/or order a ride home. A less than dreamy situation if you ask us.
Which leads us to our point: Raleigh needs to do better if it’s going to play host to epic events equal to the likes of Dreamville—which of course is what we all want. And it doesn’t stop at cell service. There’s also concerns like lodging, parking, public transportation, etc.
Dreamville is not an anomaly in terms of mass events for which our fair city already plays host. Every year, the City of Oaks attracts visitors from all over for festivals and events such as the NC State Fair, Artsplosure, Hopscotch, IBMA Bluegrass Live! (the largest free urban bluegrass festival in the world) and Brewgaloo—to name a few. Not only do out-of-towners expect (and pay for) an exceptional experience that’ll have them coming back for more, our city is on full display—and we need to act the part.
And not just because we want fun fests (though who doesn’t) or to draw the oohs and aahs of visitors. As a result of the tens of thousands of people Dreamville alone drew to the area, the fest benefits the city financially, providing a huge economic boost for Raleigh businesses. While the 2022 number has yet to be announced, 2019’s festival brought in a whopping $3.8 million to businesses!
So, yeah—a cell tower or two, a new hotel, maybe some better public transportation could really take ole Raleigh to the next level when it comes to hosting future events. Because despite the fact that J. Cole “put my city on the map,” we’ve still got a lot of work to do.
Right now, all large events in Raleigh have been cancelled, postponed or suspended and it’s hard to imagine life getting back to normal—but it will. Our list of the city’s best events is a mix of Raleigh’s oldest and newest, events where you can give back and a couple that only happen once in a lifetime. Don’t worry, once life returns to normal, we fully expect these events to still be on the calendar.
Band Together NC, an organization that brings the community and nonprofits together through live music is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Band Together will celebrate the milestone with a big community concert honoring all of its partners from the last 20 years.
A great opportunity to indulge your palate and find a new favorite restaurant, this week-long event offers diners the chance to grab great lunches for $5-$10 and three-course, prix fixe dinners for either $20 or $30.
The Black Crowes are reuniting for a tour this year. The Robinson brothers haven’t played a show since 2013, but, luckily for fans, time seems to have healed all wounds and reported rifts. The tour will hit the Carolinas with dates scheduled for PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte on Friday, July 3 and Coastal Credit Union Music Park in Raleigh on Saturday, July 4.
Once again topping USA Today’s list as one of the biggest and best beer festivals in the country, Brewgaloo is North Carolina’s largest craft beer festival, celebrating everything local—local beer, local food trucks and local vendors. The Saturday festival includes a Friday night block party.
Election Day 11/3/2020
It’s a privilege, a right and a responsibility to cast your ballot for many offices but especially for the President of the United States. Please, read up on the issues; decide for yourself who will lead our country best and cast your ballot in service of the direction you’d like to see our country go. And, of course, don’t forget to cast a vote for who you’d like to represent you in Congress, in the U.S. Senate and in dozens of other state and local offices.
One of the Southeast’s premier arts festivals, Artsplosure celebrates fine visual art and live music. More than 80,000 people roam the streets of downtown Raleigh, viewing work in different mediums from more than 180 artists for free.
Evening of Hope is a who’s who of Raleigh, an annual gala benefiting The Foundation of Hope for Research & Treatment of Mental Illness. The gala includes dinner with wine pairings at the Pavilion at the Angus Barn. This year’s speaker, country music singer LeAnn Rimes, talks about her battles with depression and anxiety.
Raleigh’s hometown race and the city’s 14th annual City of Oaks Marathon will offer distance races for everyone. Lace up your running shoes for the full marathon, a half marathon, a marathon relay, the Old Reliable 10K, the Acorn 5K or a mile with the kids. Afterwards, relax at the post-race party with live music and free beer.
Hopscotch returns to venues all over downtown Raleigh for the energetic music festival’s eighth straight year. More than 450 bands will perform for 60,000 fans; look for the festival lineup soon and get those wristbands early, because shows tend to sell out fast.
While the kickoff for North Hills’ 13th season will likely be postponed to later in the summer, this is definitely a summertime must-do event. The series offers the best of Beach Music on warm summer nights and features shag dancing, a storied, time-honored tradition in the South.
Alanis Morisette is celebrating the 25th anniversary of her breakthrough album “Jagged Little Pill” with a tour. Morisette will play in Charlotte on June 21 and in Raleigh on June 23 at Coastal Credit Union Music Park.
The largest free urban bluegrass festival in the world returns to Raleigh with eight stages of IBMA and GRAMMY Award winners, emerging artists, and traditional bluegrass tunes. The Main Stage at Red Hat Amphitheater is a fundraiser for the IBMA Trust Fund, a nonprofit that supports bluegrass music professionals.
Get ready for fried foods of all of all kinds, gigantic pumpkins, exhilarating carnival rides, live performances and more at the annual N.C. State Fair. The event draws in 11 million visitors every year and is the largest event in the state of North Carolina.
Local businesses feel the heat from a heavy schedule of events downtown.
Fall is festival season in Raleigh and with it comes colorful sidewalk drawings, twangs of bluegrass music, concerts and club hopping, and motorcycle stunt shows—and hundreds of thousands of people.
As we reported last month, events can pump millions of new dollars into the local economy.
But with festivals come street closures, dump trucks and 18-wheelers, and folks heading downtown to enjoy themselves who aren’t necessarily shopping or eating at restaurants. People working at downtown businesses struggle to find parking, and people commuting to downtown when festivals are setting up have trouble getting to work, or to court, or to wherever else they have to go to go about their business.
“We have certainly heard from some merchants that there are a lot of street closures and there’s a pretty heavy event schedule in downtown,” says Bill King, the director of planning and economic development for the Downtown Raleigh Alliance. “For some merchants, they feel like that makes it challenging.”
Raleigh Magazine spoke to several downtown business owners about festivals and while most said they enjoy them and want them to stay, they have lots of ideas of how to tweak events to ensure other businesses and theirs don’t suffer.
“What do you do when another big festival wants to come downtown,” wonders Brent Francese, the co-owner of Runologie on Hillsborough Street. “As the events grow, Fayetteville Street is going to get maxed out. It’s a great problem that Raleigh didn’t have 15 years ago. There’s a lot of opportunity, but we’ve got to make moves and think about this stuff now.”
Francese says that while Runologie’s sales have increased in each of the three years the store has been open, he typically notices a dip in sales around September. That’s not normal, he says, as people tend to buy more outdoor exercise gear as temperatures cool down.
Pam Blondin, owner of Deco and Deco Home on Hargett Street, says the net effect of festivals on her businesses in September is neutral.
“It’s definitely a misnomer that festivals boost business; that’s just not the case,” Blondin says. “We have two festivals where business is down, we get more walk-ins who don’t make purchases. Often we’ll have a garbage truck or an 18-wheeler in front of the store, which is not ideal if the truck is smelly and noisy.”
It’s not just shops feeling the heat. Downtown restaurants have been known to close their doors during some event weekends, with owners determining it’s just not worth the cost of opening at all. Paul Siler, who owns Garland, Kings and Neptune’s with his wife, Cheetie Kumar, says his employees have a difficult time finding parking, and events setting up on weekday evenings can kill business and downtown activity in general.
“It is extremely stressful,” Siler says. “When they shut streets down on a Thursday night, it’s like a bizarro ghost town, it’s crazy. The streets are closed, spotlights and tents are set up and it’s surreal, no one’s walking around.”
Outreach from organizers
It’s been five years or so since downtown, and Fayetteville Street especially, became saturated with festivals, especially in September. For this last year, however, organizers for festivals including SPARKcon, Capital City Bike Fest and Hopscotch met with local business owners at Trophy Brewing beforehand for a listening session. They took proactive measures to help ensure downtown businesses wouldn’t lose sales during their events.
Hopscotch organizers opened up the side streets around Fayetteville—Martin, Hargett and Davie Streets—for traffic and parking, as they had done in years before. SPARKcon’s organizers created marketing materials, including signs, a map and a guide that volunteers handed out to festival goers, directing people to local shops, bars and restaurants that weren’t necessarily on the footprint of the art festival itself. SPARKcon also worked with businesses, such as Bittersweet and Ruby Deluxe, to host festival events in their spaces, a model that Hopscotch has used since its outset.
“The map and guides were really popular,” says Brandon Cordrey, a SPARKcon organizer and the executive director of downtown’s Visual Art Exchange. “We helped push people into those places and it’s such a small thing, but it makes for a world of positive feedback.”
Bike Fest organizers added maps listing every downtown restaurant and retailer to their festival’s app and website and offered a 25 percent discount and merchandise at the Ray Price Harley Davidson store to customers who took selfies at local businesses.
Small changes can help
“It’s not that visitors attending Bike Fest don’t want to go to local businesses,” says Scott Misner, a Bike Fest organizer. “We just needed to find a way to connect the bikers to the businesses and the businesses to the bikers.”
As for regulars who avoid downtown during festivals over concerns about parking or street closures, Jennifer Martin, the executive director of Shop Local Raleigh, says there are ways businesses can incentivize their customers to come downtown and visit their stores or eat or drink at their restaurant or bar. For example, make creative use of the postcards the city mails to residents to notify them of events and street closures, or give out coupons at the event.
“Use social media and advertise to anyone who brings that postcard free parking or a cup of hot chocolate or glass of champagne,” says Martin, who herself organizes springtime’s Brewgaloo and the Christmas Parade. “I think the postcard has a lot of potential use as a win to help the market.”
Garland’s Siler says keeping side streets open so employees can access parking—and customers, delivery trucks and bands can access businesses—would be helpful. He says employing a city police officer to staff intersections, instead of using trucks to block traffic, would be better, too, and, he says, setup for events should be limited to immediately before the event is scheduled to begin, not a whole day or night before.
Planning for the future
Small changes like these can go a long way but what happens can when, as Runologie’s Francese says, Fayetteville Street gets maxed out? What happens when Hopscotch grows to the size of Bonnaroo, or what if Raleigh wants to bring on another big, high-profile music or arts festival?
“We need to learn to utilize all of our spaces downtown,” Francese says. “We have a lot of great urban spaces where it will make sense to host stuff down the road.”
He cites Dix Park, currently undergoing a redesign process, as well as Chavis Park which is slated for upgrades too. Deco’s Blondin adds that the Warehouse District, Moore and Nash Squares and, potentially, the Capitol grounds are other underutilized spaces, waiting for someone to take the lead on hosting events there.
Blondin is on the city’s Special Events Task Force, composed of city planners and staff and representatives from the business community who make suggestions to prospective event organizers. The committee can make recommendations to approve or deny any event but ultimately, it’s the city’s call.
Blondin and Francese say the city has a role to play in scheduling events so that they’re not all in one place, weekend after weekend, and that it should look at how festivals affect residents who need to get downtown for work or other business when events are going on. In 2014, the city introduced a moratorium on downtown road races; though no one says they want to see a moratorium on downtown festivals, all agree there are ways to plan them smarter.
“It’s no one’s fault, but there is no mechanism [for the task force] to say to festival organizers, ‘Hey, what are you trying to accomplish here,’” Blondin says. “I would love to see a limit on how many events there are in any specific location in a year. It makes the events less special if they’re in the same place every single weekend. That’s a shame because we have a cool city, and there is room to try things elsewhere.”
For its part, the DRA is also studying foot traffic during festival season using body heat-activated sensor technology in five downtown stores. The data collected will demonstrate how foot traffic compares in September to other months in the summer and fall and will be available early next year.
King says the DRA is looking at peer cities, too, to see how places like Austin, Nashville and Atlanta schedule and host events. And, while it will be a few more years before Dix Park has enough infrastructure to host a large event, King says, right now, a little creativity and communication is key.
“If restaurants like Garland are feeling pain from festivals, that’s a problem,” King says. “Downtown Raleigh needs more Garlands. We need to reach residents during festivals and say, ‘Here is what’s going on in the businesses. They’re not closed. Go check them out.”
