Events annouced for Fourth of July weekend

ALBANY — Albany officials announced Friday completed plans for a Fourth of July Celebration Weekend that will include bike rides, movies, music and, of course, one of the region’s finest fireworks shows.

The announcement came during a news conference at the Thronateeska Heritage Center.

“We are excited to announce plans for our Fourth of July Celebration Weekend for this year,” said Joel Holmes, director of Albany Recreation and Parks. “We have a great weekend planned. As always, we will have our usual fireworks show, which will be outstanding, but in addition this year we have added several events to make an entire weekend of fun possible for the citizens of Albany.”

Many activities are planned prior to the Monday Fourth of July holiday, according to Albany Downtown Manager Latoya Cutts.

“We will get started on that Friday, which is July the first,” Cutts said. “Every month on the first Friday, we have the Flint River Roll, which is a slow social bike ride through downtown Albany. We do that in partnership with the Pecan City Pedalers and the Convention of Visitors Bureau. That bike ride will start at 6:30 p.m., and it is a one-hour ride. We will have a DJ playing music, and afterwards we will also have Sylvia Maxwell doing yoga in the park.”

Friday’s festivities Friday will also include a refurbished bike giveaway sponsored by the Albany Police Department and the Pecan City Pedalers.

“Saturday, we have our outdoor music concert,” said Cutts. “We’ve got Ruben Studdard, who was the winner of ‘American Idol,’ I believe, the third season. He is going to be here as the primary person providing music for us, and we will also be featuring the Craig Lewis Band that was featured on ‘America’s Got Talent.’

“We also have two local bands playing, one of which is the Ryan West Band, and they’re going to be performing Saturday at the Veterans Amphitheater. So that outdoor music concert will start at 5:30 p.m. and go to about 9:30 p.m.”

Sunday’s activities include a movie in the park, featuring the animated hit “Hotel Transylvania 2,” officials said. The film will begin at 8:45 p.m.

According to Thronateeska/Flint RiverQuarium Director Tommy Gregors, along with the normal activities at each of those facilities, a special science feature about the moon will be presented Saturday starting at 12:30 p.m. Also, both facilities will be open on the Fourth with joint admission tickets available for $8 per person.

“The Albany Police Department will be out in force at every event throughout the holiday weekend to ensure public safety,” said APD Lt. William Dowdell. “We are asking that everybody come as a family and leave as a family. We want everybody to come, be safe, enjoy the weekend, and then we want everyone and their loved ones to get home safely.”

Monday’s annual fireworks show, which will originate this year on the newly renovated Broad Avenue bridge, will provide a fitting grand finale for the weekend.

“We are so excited about bringing the fireworks back to the new Broad Avenue bridge,” said Kristin Caso, special events coordinator for Albany Recreation and Parks. “It has been eight long years since we’ve had the fireworks on the bridge. The Flint River is our greatest natural asset in this city, and for anyone who never saw the fireworks off of the bridge, it’s just spectacular.”

Officials say the best fireworks viewing areas will be from Riverfront Park and the Ray Charles Plaza. Fireworks begin at 9:30 p.m.

For more information on any of the weekend events, call Albany Recreation and Parks at (229) 430-5222.