Fort Payne Third Saturday Sunset

Third Saturday Sunset Cruise In is constantly improving; more entertainment, more classic cars, more food, more people and more fun. It has been fantastic each of the four times we have had it this year. Fort Payne Main Street hosts the Main Street Block Party each Third Saturday at the DeKalb Theater Courtyard, which now has a roof over it and is getting a great new façade. At the block party we will have a photo booth with dress up costumes and some live music with Justin Coonce. There will be pop corn, beer and wine sales and a lot of tables and chairs to sit and enjoy your friends and all the fun taking place at the Main Street Courtyard event. This is a really fun way to spend a Saturday evening. Gault Avenue is closed to traffic and downtown from 1^st Street to 5^th Street becomes a big walkway to stroll and enjoy an evening of entertainment, food, shopping, games for the kids and 200 classic cars, or more. It is here you will see many of your friends that you have not seen for awhile. Along the way you will hear great local entertainers. They are spaced at just the right distance apart so when you start getting too far away to hear one, you begin hearing another. This means at almost all locations along your walk through downtown you can hear music. As you walk you will find a large collection of classic cars provided by local collectors and car enthusiasts. Gault Avenue will be lined with cars, one after another, on both sides of the street. Amelia Landstreet, who heads up the Third Saturday planning committee, tells us there are often as many as 250 classic cars.  In addition to Amelia Landstreet, the other dedicated planners on the Third Saturday committee are Terry Locklear, Johnny Eberhart, Randall Ham, Steve Westmoreland and Chris Roberts. Third Saturday Sunset is held from April through October. The hours are 4-8 PM. At sunset on a nice evening the sunlight sets shining its sparkle across our beautiful historic downtown and lights up the side of Lookout Mountain with a beautiful warm glow. We are truly blessed with a very appealing downtown with our historic Boom Days architecture of the late 1880’s to the perfectly maintained City Parks all clustered in our historic district close to  the original, recently restored Coal & Iron/Opera Block.  Just down the road is the Depot Museum, Alabama Walking Park and our new Rotary Pavilion amphitheater. The whole time you are walking around downtown Lookout Mountain is standing there beside you, majestic and peaceful. There is a sense of being nestled at the foot of the mountain that gives Fort Payne another attribute to its already strong visual appeal as an all American downtown…quaint, friendly and steeped in good will, strong values and a strong sense of community that is exhibited everywhere you look and to everyone you speak.

Many thanks to the Mayor and City Council and to the Third Saturday planning committee along with Fort Payne Main Street and the downtown merchants who have done a great job hosting this event. The crowd estimated at 2,500 to 3,000 made for a very successful event. Also thanks to our Parks and Recreation Department for keeping our parks “picture perfect” and to the police and fire departments who protect our people and our assets.