City to close 2 blocks for First Friday

FLORENCE - August’s First Friday will have a new twist: Two blocks of Court Street will be closed to vehicle traffic.

The monthly downtown arts event draws big crowds that gather along Court Street, Florence’s main downtown thoroughfare. With more people attending First Friday, event organizers have decided to block vehicular traffic along two blocks to accommodate the crowd and for safety purposes.

“The increased crowd is the reason we are doing this,” said Teryl Shields, director of Florence Main Street, which sponsors the event. “The crowd has increased from 500-700 people in March to about 2,500 in July.

“As the numbers increased, we knew this was a direction we needed to move in,” she said. “People have been finding alternative ways of getting around — not using the sidewalks — and that is a safety concern.”

Tombigbee Street will be blocked from Seminary Street to Court Street beginning at 2 p.m. Friday, Aug. 6, to allow a stage to be set up for a band, said John Hamm, community relations officer for the Florence Police Department.

Court Street, between Tennessee and Tombigbee streets, will be blocked to vehicular traffic at 4 p.m., he said. The event begins at 5 p.m., and concludes at 9 p.m.

Parking access within the barricaded area will be granted to vendors, with an entry point at Tombigbee and Court streets, Shields said.

Dena McClure, a co-owner of Relique, a jewelry and arts shop in Florence, is a regular vendor at First Friday. She said closing a portion of Court Street should improve the event for everyone.

“It will be safer,” Shields said. “It will be a positive, and I think people who don’t know about will be curious when they drive by and stop.”

Closing Court Street during First Fridays has been discussed for months by Main Street, Downtown Florence Unlimited, the merchants’ association and city officials.

Shields said a poll of downtown businesses was taken before a decision was made, and only one expressed serious concerns, she said.

Robert Palmer can be reached at 256-740-5720 or robert.palmer@TimesDaily.com.