The exclamation mark on Gaines Street is complete! The City of Tallahassee, Leon County Government, the Community Redevelopment Agency and The Florida State University Master Craftsman Studio (MCS) invite you to join us at the Shine On Gaines event on Wednesday, Dec. 3, from 5:30-8 p.m.
The centerpiece of the free block party will be the spectacular lighting of Declaration by Kenneth von Roenn, director of MCS. It is the newest piece of public art in Tallahassee. This unique piece is symbolic of the vibrant, creative community where it lives.
Declaration stands 20 feet tall and is located in the roundabout at Gaines Street and Woodward Avenue. The cone shaped, stainless steel framework supports diamond shaped panels of dichroic glass, which shimmer in the sunlight and appear to shift in color as the viewer travels around the sculpture. At night, its base lights will illuminate the glass and be a signal of the bustling Gaines Street district.
To encourage everyone to find their inner artist, there will be an art exchange booth. Attendees can create a doodle (a simple artistic drawing) at the booth, and, in exchange, the first 250 participants will receive a ticket for a free commemorative gift made from glass used in the making of Declaration. Tickets will need to be redeemed at MCS that evening for the gift. Tickets will be handed out on a first come, first served basis. Paper and doodle materials will be provided. All doodles will be displayed at the event.
From 5:30-6 p.m., the rhythms of the Bakan Trio will get the crowd moving. Following the formal ceremony, Hot Tamale will take the stage from approximately 6:30-8 p.m. The stage will be set up near the intersection of Woodward Avenue and Madison Street.
The formal ceremony will begin at 6 p.m. Remarks will be made on the stage, and then the crowd will be asked to join officials in front of Declaration. A live performance will lead to the spectacular lighting of Declaration and a crowd-pleasing flourish that you won’t want to miss, courtesy of Ashley Pyrotechnics Inc.
Local Gaines Street area businesses will have booths set up at the event where citizens can learn more about the wide variety of goods and services offered in the district. Additionally, many local businesses in the area are open during the evening hours. You can make a night of it by grabbing dinner, watching the lighting ceremony and beginning your holiday shopping.
There will be a children’s area on the grassy lot on the northeast corner of the intersection of Woodward Avenue and Madison Street. It will feature a bounce house and coloring station.
For the event, Woodward Avenue will be shut down from W. St. Augustine Street to Gaines Street from 2-10 p.m. Madison Street will be closed to thru traffic from Woodward Avenue to Stone Valley Way from 2-10 p.m. Gaines Street will be closed to thru traffic between Lake Bradford Road and Stone Valley Way from 5:45-9 p.m.
Parking is available along Madison Street, Gaines Street, Gay Street and W. St. Augustine Street. For this event, metered spaces in the area will be free starting at 5 p.m., an hour earlier than usual.
The Gaines Street project was the result of more than 20 years of community visioning and planning by the City of Tallahassee. The City and Leon County Government were primary funding partners for road construction of the project through the penny sales tax and also as participants in the Community Redevelopment Agency, another key partner in the project. With input from citizens and business owners, an outline for a destination district in the heart of Tallahassee was developed. Gaines Street today serves as a connection between Florida A&M University and Florida State University, as an economic development hub and as a home for arts and culture.
After more than five years of construction at an approximate cost of $12 million, the project is complete. Redevelopment efforts are paying off for the community. More than $285 million dollars in new development has taken place in the Gaines district since the start of the project, and that figure continues to increase.
For information on the project, please visit Talgov.com/Gaines. For updates on the event, please visit Facebook.com/GainesStreet or follow @GainesStreet on Twitter.
