Grand Old Day to expand to two-day event in 2016
by Jay Gabler
August 21, 2015
St. Paul's Grand Old Day plans to expand from a one-day to a two-day event in 2016. In addition to the traditional activities—including concerts, food vendors, and street tents—on Sunday, June 5, there will also be activities on Saturday, June 4. The newly-added second day, though, will have a different vibe.
"We really wanted Saturday to be focused on the businesses based on Grand Avenue," Grand Avenue Business Association executive director Jon Perrone tells the Pioneer Press. "There'll be sidewalk sales and store events and that kind of thing. It's a way to expand on a great tradition."
The two-day event will be, in a way, a return to its roots: for a short while, decades ago, Perrone told the Pioneer Press, Grand Old Day was a two-day celebration before being scaled back to the one-day affair it's been since the 1980s.
The event will also expand its geographic reach, to encompass 30 blocks of Grand Avenue from Dale to Prior. There's no question about the community's demand for more Grand Old Day: this year's event set an attendance record, with over 300,000 people strolling down St. Paul's most famous shopping street.