Greater Bay Shore coverage is funded in part by Shoregate, now leasing brand-new premium apartment homes in the heart of Bay Shore. Click here to schedule a tour.
The 17th Annual Arts Festival by the Bay kicks off at 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 11, and runs to 6 p.m. in Bay Shore.
The event is organized by the Chamber of Commerce of Greater Bay Shore.
Main Street, from Smith Avenue to Shore Lane, is closed to vehicle traffic and instead is lined with artists and vendors.
All the food for festival-goers is provided by the local restaurants.
There’s a huge musical component to Arts Fest as well, which each years features bands, orchestras and choirs from the Bay Shore middle and high schools.
Regional acts include Sweet Adelines, Babylon Chorale, Hibernian Festival Singers and the First Baptist Church of Bay Shore Choir.
Those groups perform at the Main Street Bandshell. Rock acts perform elsewhere on the street.
The 2017 Arts Festival will once again be graced with a special appearance by the historic Oyster Sloop Priscilla, courtesy of the Long Island Maritime Museum in West Sayville.
Also, the grand prize ticket for the first-ever 30 Days of Eating in Bay Shore contest will be drawn at 4 p.m. at the chamber booth. The winner gets $1,250 worth of $50 gift cards from 25 Bay Shore restaurants. Tickets will be on sale at the chamber booth beforehand.
The money is being raised for the Bay Shore Restaurant Committee’s plans to present the downtown’s first-ever summer dining, arts and entertainment series on select Wednesday nights in July and August. The series will be called Alive by the Bay. (Check back at GreaterBayShore for updates.)
Photo: The stage outside Local Burger Co. on East Main Street during last year’s festival. (file)
