By Jim Bloch
St. Clair’s winter festival known as the Icy Bazaar rolls into town Friday-Sunday, Jan. 24-26, featuring fireworks, ice carving competitions, live music, face painting for kids and other events.
The St. Clair Chamber of Commerce sponsors the weekend festival.
On Friday, live ice carvings begin at 3 p.m. and continue the rest of the day. A new feature to the festivities this year is a Black Light Party at War Water Brewery, 8 p.m.-midnight. The cost is $50 per person and includes music by DJ Who, appetizers, late night pizza, an open bar and ice luge shots at an additional charge. The party is open to people 21 and older. The dress code: “If it glows, it goes.”
Most of the events will take place in and around the courtyard of Riverview Plaza. But ice carving will be featured at Coughlin Jewelers, 516 S. Riverside at the corner of Clinton, Saturday 10-11 a.m.
Also, on Saturday, live ice carvings take place at the plaza, 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m., sponsored by Towbook Management Software, Wellington Financial Strategies Corp., War Water Brewery, Hamlin Pub and LaFontaine Ford. Some of the carvings are large enough that visitors may sit on them.
Enjoy face painting, crafts for kids and circus acts 1-5 p.m.
A speed ice carving contest will be held 6-7 p.m.
One of the most unusual and seemingly contradictory features of the weekend is the giant ice-encased fire pit, which will be lit at 7:30 p.m., sponsored by Hamlin Pub, RMHC Detroit, LaFontaine, Wellington Financial and War Water Brewery.
The free fireworks show launches from Palmer Park at 7:45 p.m., sponsored by Towbook, Coughlin Jewelers, Wellington Financial, Cargill, LaFontaine Chevrolet Buick GMC, St. Clair Landscape & Irrigation, War Water and the Community Foundation of St. Clair County. Because the launch site is the park instead of a barge in the river as on July 4, the fireworks appear to go off immediately overhead.
The band Sunset Blvd. plays a free show at War Water 8:30-midnight.
DJ Don Mecca spins tunes at Hamlin Pub 10 p.m.-2 a.m.
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer based in St. Clair, MI. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
