Call it a silver lining from the Covid pandemic. It’s been a long time coming, but the city of Niles will celebrate a new outdoor gathering space downtown with a grand opening bash Saturday.
To keep downtown bars and restaurants from closing for good during the pandemic, the city in 2020 closed off a block of Second Street and set up some tables, a firepit and makeshift wind barriers. Niles Mayor Nick Shelton says it didn’t look great but it did the job.
Now the mayor says the area does look great. It’s called the NODE, which stands for Niles Outdoor Dining Experience. The city has installed outdoor furniture and run natural gas lines underground, improved public restrooms and more. It paid for the project with $650,000 in state and federal grants.
"Now it's just a beautiful hub right in the heart of our downtown where we can not only replicate what we did during Covid with restaurants and dining, but just create an awesome venue right in the heart of our city where people can spend time, enjoy events, where businesses can capitalize on the space through different offerings, gatherings, and just ultimately drive more business to our downtown district," Shelton said.
The free event will feature live music:
2 p.m. — Anja Tabor
2:45 p.m. — Hank Nelson and Friends
4:15 p.m. — Marc Sucks (which includes the mayor on guitar)
5 p.m. — Shreddy Tendergrass
6:20 p.m. — Hey Annie
8 p.m. — Abbie Thomas and the Crazy Hearts
