by Dennis Dalman
Sartell SummerFest is back again in full glory.
The popular event will take place in full force Saturday, June 11 with its grand parade, family fun fest, a street dance, fireworks and more.
After more than three decades as an annual city celebration, Sartell SummerFest was cancelled in 2020 because of the Covid pandemic. The celebration was scaled back and modified last June.
SummerFest 2022 will begin at 10 a.m. with a big parade, and this time it will have a different street route due to ongoing construction on CR 1 (Riverside Avenue). The parade, sponsored by Granite Logistics, will begin at the School District Service Building (by St. Francis Xavier Church) and end at Riverview Intermediate School. The parade route will go south on Second Street, turn east onto Fourth Street N., then turn south on Second Avenue North, turn west on Seventh Street North and on to Riverview school.
The parade will feature marching bands, imaginative floats, clowns, candy for kids, fire trucks, dancers and other fun surprises.
Right after the parade, the Libertyville Family Fun event will take place from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. on the grounds of Sartell City Hall. Libertyville is named after its long-time annual sponsor, Liberty Bank. It will feature face-painting, bounce houses, games and many other free activities for children and their families to enjoy. Barbeque treats will be served by VoigtJohnon BBQ.
At 6:30 p.m., a street dance will begin in the city-hall parking lot, with music performed live by Radio Nation. The dance will end at 10 p.m. Radio Nation is a well-established four-member country/rock band in central Minnesota. It includes founding member Dave Lumley, singer-guitarist, who has served as the Sartell-St. Stephen High School’s band leader for many years. As it has been for years, the street dance is sponsored by Great River Bowl & Partners Pub.
SummerFest night will conclude with a dazzling fireworks display starting at 10:15 p.m. and launched from the grounds of Pine Meadow Primary School. The display will be visible from the grounds of city hall, site of the street dance. The fireworks can also be seen from Riverview Intermediate School (formerly Sartell Middle School), where there is ample parking. There will also be limited seating on the lawn at Pine Meadow Primary School.
For Libertyville and the street dance events, both on the grounds of city hall, the Scheels Athletic Complex near city hall is making its large parking lot available for festival-goers. There are paths through Pinecone Regional Park so people can walk from one event to another. The path leads from the athletic-complex parking area to city hall.
