A group of women were all smiles at last year’s Fortville Summerfest 5K, which raises funds to host future festivals. This year’s Summerfest will be from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, July 9 at Landmark Park.
FORTVILLE — The Fortville Summerfest is set to go off with a bang this Saturday, July 9, as thousands are expected to descend on Landmark Park to enjoy fireworks, food trucks and live music.
Natalie Tucker, who was hired as the town’s events coordinator through the parks department two months ago, said the town strategically plans its annual fireworks show on the Saturday after the Fourth of July.
“Being a small town we don’t want to compete” with other fireworks shows, she said. “We want everyone to be in town for Summerfest, and we’ve noticed that the crowds are bigger if you hold it the Saturday after the Fourth. Last year we drew in between 4,000 and 5,000 people from all the surrounding areas, including Anderson, Fishers, Greenfield and Geist.”
The free all-day event takes place from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. in Landmark Park and features over 75 vendor booths, food trucks and live music, as well as a kids’ zone with face painting and a bounce house.
The 45-minute long fireworks show kicks off at 9:45 p.m. Saturday.
This year’s Summerfest is courtesy of the Town of Fortville and the Fortville Parks Department, which is running the show for the second year in a row.
Prior to the festival being canceled in 2020 due to COVID, it was run by the Fortville/McCordsville Area Chamber of Commerce, which has since changed names to the Northern Hancock Area Chamber of Commerce.
“The town took it over in 2021 with help from the Friends of Fortville Parks,” a nonprofit that helps support the local parks, said Fortville parks director Heath Luther. The goal is to generate enough revenue from each Summerfest to continue hosting the event each year.
Luther said the parks department is gradually starting to host more events in town, thanks in part to hiring Tucker as a part-time events coordinator. Creating the new position should help in planning and executing events which draw people into Fortville and create a sense of community for local residents, he said.
The town is also taking over the Fortville Winterfest, which was started by a volunteer-based group called Fortville Action, Inc. in 2010.
“Their membership is a little bit older and the physical side of that was becoming a little taxing for them,” said Luther. “They started something awesome and wanted to be able to keep it going, so we stepped in to help.”
Tucker is thrilled to now be planning events as a part-time town employee after years of volunteering through the Friends of Fortville Parks.
In addition to Summerfest and Winterfest, which is scheduled for Dec. 3, she’s also organizing a Mommy & Me Princess Tea Party and a visit from the Newport Aquarium’s traveling penguin exhibit, among other things.
The longtime Fortville resident is thankful for the opportunity to plan fun things to do in the community where she and her husband have raised their six kids.
“Fortville is an amazing place. The community is absolutely wonderful,” she said. “We love the small town feel, and being able to walk in the parks at night and get some ice cream at Libby’s. It’s definitely a family-oriented environment.”
Tucker is looking forward to seeing thousands of people turn out for this weekend’s Summerfest, which has grown exponentially since it first started seven years ago.
“It started out as one man wanting to do a little fireworks show for the community and it’s just grown from there,” Luther said.
Last year, a Friday night 5K was added to the lineup of Fortville Summerfest events, creating another way to generate revenue that goes toward hosting future festivals.
Roughly 150 participants took part last year, and 125 are registered so far this year. Registration is open online through Friday at runsignup.com.
Tucker said Fortville’s annual festivals are a great way to show off the town’s parks, including the 4-and-a-half-acre Landmark Park and 40-acre Memorial Park, which is home to the Fortville Optimists softball and baseball leagues.
Luther said the parks have had about $750,000 worth of upgrades done in the past six months, with about $75,000 going towards renovating the Memorial Park shelter house alone.
The park’s basketball and tennis courts were recently resurfaced and equipped with new nets and lighting, and new lighting was installed at the ball fields. The town’s community center also got a new roof and HVAC system.
“We’ve had a pretty good run on some improvements in and around the parks,” said Luther, who has been parks director since 2017.
With the town of Fortville situated near where Madison, Hancock and Hamilton counties meet, the town draws a number of visitors from a wide variety of areas, he said.
“With the growth you’re seeing in and around Hancock County and Fortville, we’re getting a lot more residents moving into this general area. The town’s special events are a great way to showcase what we have and what direction Fortville is heading as a municipality over the next five to 10 years,” he said.
For the latest on Fortville town events, visit the Fortville Parks Department page on Facebook.
