MANSFIELD — No one watches weekend weather reports this time of year more than Jamie Thompson.
And her official forecast for Friday night is party.
That’s when Downtown Mansfield Inc. fires off its first “Final Friday” of the season at The Brickyard.
“It’s very important to us to have a great Friday night,” said Thompson, chief development officer for DMI.
“The weather is looking pretty fantastic,” she said.
The National Weather Service office in Cleveland seeks to cooperate. It’s forecasting a sunny day Friday with a high of 72 and partly cloudy skies at night with a low around 50.
Three pop/rock bands are lined up for opening night of the free music series that began in 2007. The event packs thousands of people into the venue at 21 E. Temple Court.
Ethan Timm opens the show at 5:30 p.m., followed by Yak Pak at 6:30 p.m. The Michael Weber Show headlines the concert, expected to take the stage at 8:30 p.m.
New this year is the free transportation to and from the event that’s available through Richland County Transit.
RCT plans to provide fare-free, on-demand response rides during the five scheduled Final Friday events at The Brickyard.
related reading
It’s a pilot project for the public transit agency, which is interested in exploring other on-demand transportation possibilities in the future, according to Jean Taddie, transit development manager for the Richland County Regional Planning Commission.
The service area includes Mansfield, Lexington, Ontario, and Madison Township. Anyone with questions can call Taddie at 419-774-6396.
Those wishing for a ride with RCT can schedule their ride in advance or on the evening of the event. Provide your home pickup or drop-off address and RCT dispatchers will do the rest.
Follow the link for more info: https://rctbuses.com/final-friday/
“We have toyed with some type of ride service in the past,” Thompson said, “as another option for people who want to attend the Final Friday events.
“RCT has been exploring more of an on-demand option for the community and to assist with what you see in bigger communities, as far as Ubers, and those types of things, just something to get them started and off the ground.
“This is a litmus test for them certainly to see how that might look here moving forward as something different in our community as an option, but also to fulfill our needs for people coming into downtown,” Thompson said.
Food trucks on site Friday night are scheduled to be Bytchn Kitchen, Deja Food, The Fry guys, Pancho’s Tacos, The Food Tour and The Looney Lemon.
Thompson said those in attendance can get visual keepsakes of the event by visiting the Prison City Photobooth Co., which will again be set up on site.
Thompson said Final Friday sponsors this year are Ohio Eye Associates, The Phoenix Brewing Company , Purdy Construction, Techniplas, and Spherion Mid Ohio. The stage is sponsored by Carrousel Properties.
Final Friday events will be May 31, June 28, July 26, Aug. 30 and Sept. 27. The events, featuring live bands, food trucks and beer sales, are from 5:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
For more information, call 419-522-0099 or email info@downtownmansfield.com.
