By Dan Spalding
News Now Warsaw
WARSAW — Entering its sixth year, the St. Paddy’s Street Party, set for Saturday in downtown Warsaw, is truly bigger and better than ever before.
This year, the festival has picked up more corporate support than ever before, including 14 different companies.
The festival has also expanded with the support of Go Rogue Warsaw which has organized a 5K fun run with registration topping 60 people as of Thursday.
The race is expected to start at 3 p.m. and registration will still be available beorehand.
Jason Brown, the festival founder who owns One Ten Craft Meatery on Buffalo Street where the street fair is focused, said the annual event has matured to include much more support than just food vendors and downtown merchants.
Sponsors include Rabb Water Kinetico, 107.3 WRSW, Main Street Warsaw, G&G Hauling & Excavating, Warsaw Party & Rental, First Federal Savings Bank, Moving Pictures Tattoo Cinema, OrthoWorx, Travis McConnell Law Office, The Bailey Moore Foundation, Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce and The Lab.
Main sponsors include Lake City Bank, Maple Leaf Farms and Silveus Insurance.
“It’ not just food and beverage vendors. It’s literally, the community coming together saying we know it takes a village. We’d like to be part of that village,” Brown said.
“We’ve always been community-first, we’ve always been collaboration-first — just trying to do the right thing,” Brown said. “We’re open to letting pretty much anybody who wants to be involved be involved as long as it makes it a better experience for everybody.”
The festival includes numerous food vendors, family oriented activities as well as a traditional beer tent that will feature two live bands.
Brown’s also excited about next year when the newly established outdoor beverage policy for downtown Warsaw (known as DORA), becomes part of the downtown environment.
DORA allows restaurant patrons and festival goers to take their adult beverages outdoors.
Warsaw City Council recently approved plans for the DORA District which will be ready for use later this year with more than a dozen restaurants and bars participating.
Next year’s festival will certainly continue to include a beer tent, but participants will be free to take their drinks outside of the tent.
“It’ll just kind of open up our ability as far as not having to be restrained with the beer garden which is really nice,” Brown said.
Pleasant weather with highs in the upper 50s is expected for Saturday in Warsaw.
The street party runs from 3 to 10 p.m.
