Lansing 5:01, City Pulse team up to showcase best of the city

Each year, City Pulse hosts a Top of the Town competition to allow community members to choose the businesses, restaurants, organizations, products and people they think represent the best Lansing has to offer.

Now, City Pulse and Lansing 5:01 are teaming up to host a free event that encapsulates the best of the best in the city: The Best of Lansing Festival, running 6 to 11 p.m. Saturday (July 29) at Jackson Field.

“When we started to look at doing this event and really showcasing the ‘greatest things,’ as we’re trying to call it, we knew that City Pulse has a longstanding history of celebrating the best of the best with the Top of the Town awards,” said Josh Holliday, Lansing 5:01’s director of communications and festivals. “We knew that we wanted to be able to reach the best of the best, and City Pulse was already doing that through the awards program, which is really well-respected and has great community participation. In an effort to ensure we’re elevating the great things that are happening in Lansing and also connecting and collaborating with the right people and having them at the table, we are so grateful for City Pulse and being able to create this partnership that has allowed us to really reach the magnitude of vendors and participants we have. More than 75 local businesses are going to be participating in the event.”

 

Best of Lansing Festival guide: map, vendor locations and more

 

The festival, which offers free admission, will include booths from a variety of local businesses and vendors, alcoholic beverages and food from six different food trucks available for purchase, inflatables and obstacle courses, live performances by the ‘80s cover band Starfarm and a fireworks display to cap the evening. Additionally, attendees can purchase 10 food tickets for $25 in advance or $35 at the door and sample dishes from a host of local restaurants. For more information on the participating businesses, see page 13.

“The festival idea really stems from the mission of what Lansing 5:01 is — trying to showcase what’s best and greatest about our community to the future of our community,” Holliday said. “When we thought about showcasing the best of Lansing to Lansing’s future, we were like, ‘How can we celebrate all the cool things?’ We always try to do that in our events. We’re seeing more events around the country that have activated really great venues. Spaces like baseball stadiums with all the cool makers, creators, artists, restaurants — all the things that make a community special — we’ve seen that work really well in other places, and we wanted to bring that to Lansing to really bring the community together, wrap our arms around and give a big hug to the things we love and cherish most.”

Holliday said the decision to hold the event at Jackson Field stemmed from its central location in the city and its considerable size.

“When we looked at our spaces around the community, we really wanted something that was centrally located in the region between Ingham, Eaton, Clinton and Shiawassee counties, and right at the center of that is this incredible venue that we have in our community right in our downtown area,” he said. “It’s a beautiful venue that already exists, and it showcases one other thing that’s one of the best things about Lansing: our minor league baseball team. It’s just a natural fit and really lends itself to being able to showcase so many things.”

Though he noted there’s a lot to be excited about, Holliday is most looking forward to being able to give attendees “a true taste of so many aspects in one night.”

“They’re going to be able to shop from local vendors that are selling art and things they make. They’re going to be able to taste food from some of Lansing’s coolest restaurants. They’re going to be able to dance to one of Lansing’s best cover bands, Starfarm. And then we’re going to have a fireworks show at the end of the night, so it’s great for kids and families,” he said. “If you’ve never been on the field at Jackson Field, we’re going to have these larger-than-life inflatable obstacle courses and games. It’s a 365-degree experience inside the ballpark that hasn’t existed for families like this before, so we’re really excited to bring that to the community.”

Overall, Lansing 5:01 hopes the event is able to create a sense of pride within the community for all the city has to offer.

“We talk about ‘love Lansing.’ It’s really a grassroots effort to show love to this place that so many people call home. As somebody that grew up in the Lansing area, having a sense of pride for your community is key,” Holliday said. “Our goal is that this event will show that Lansing has a lot going on. Lansing has a lot of things to offer, and that’s why people should choose to call Lansing their home.”

When asked about the future of the event and whether it will happen annually, Holliday said details are still up in the air.

“This is the first time Lansing 5:01 has done this event. We’re looking forward to seeing the response we get from the community and if it accomplishes some of the goals that align with our mission,” he said. “The response has been really strong so far. We’re looking forward to having a great showing, and we look forward to seeing how it can grow and develop in years to come.”