Area 506 Organizers Completing Final Touches
Organizers of the Area 506 Festival are putting the finishing touches on what’s sure to be one of the province’s biggest parties of the summer this weekend.
Kicking off Friday night and going through Sunday, Area 506 that celebrates uniqueness, diversity and all things incredible in New Brunswick. The event focuses on three aspects: music, culture and goods. This year’s lineup includes Jessica Rhaye, David Myles, Stars, Tegan and Sara, Les Hay Babies, Grand Theft Bus, Bahamas, Matt Mays and The Strumbellas.
The other signature attraction of the festival is the vendor village made with shipping containers, which was put together last weekend, along with the five finalists of the Canada 150 Cargo-texture competition.
“Last weekend was a huge success in terms of getting all the containers here and set up,” says Area 506 committee chair Ray Gracewood. “I think the team that was put together to do it sort of took it upon themselves to get here early and actually get a lot done, even before we technically started on Saturday. So a lot of the containers were already here and in place.”
Take an early look at the Area 506 festival site below:
Now, Gracewood says organizers are working on the final details, things like fencing, signage and lighting.
“I’d say if anything, we’re trending a little bit ahead of schedule, set up went relatively smooth last weekend and now we’re in the stage of power, lighting and electrical,” he says. “Which is an incredible beast being headed up by Mike Duncan at Duncan’s Electrical, who has done a lot of the work creating the whole vibe and how lighting creates atmosphere, so we’re super excited for people to see that come to life this weekend.”
Though tickets are still available for the events, Gracewood says he’s urging people to purchase their tickets now, since the last minute rush could lead to people missing out.
When the festival made its debut last year, Gracewood said many people took a chance on what the organizers were trying to do. But with a successful first year under their belt, he says he’s confident this year’s event will be even better.
“I’m feeling good. I think last year we learned an awful lot and there were a lot of unknowns,” he says. “This year, the positivity and the support from everybody I bump into has really kept me motivated and kept me going. Whether it’s the committee or the sponsors or our vendors … everybody believes in it.”