Neenah, Menasha and Fox Crossing have joined forces to bring live music to the Loop the Lake recreational trail during the inaugural Listen to the Loop community event on June 5.
Concerts will be held at Arrowhead Park in Neenah, Fritse Park in Fox Crossing and Shepard Park in Menasha, each kicking off at staggered times. Attendees are encouraged to move from park to park to enjoy a full evening of entertainment.
Each park will have one or two food trucks and a beverage stand. Fritse and Shepard parks will offer craft beer for sale, but Arrowhead Park will offer only nonalcoholic drinks because Neenah bans alcohol from all city parks.
Fox Crossing Parks and Recreation Director Amanda Geiser said the event is designed to bring people together to connect or reconnect with their neighbors.
“We want people to get out – walk, bike, drive, however you want to get out – and explore everything that the Loop has to offer,” Geiser told The Post-Crescent. “It connects the three communities via a trail system, and this event is connecting the three communities.”
The 3.5-mile trail opened in 2018. It encircles the south half of Little Lake Butte des Morts, crossing the lake, the Fox River and the Neenah Slough, which is known in Neenah as Neenah Creek. The route offers scenic views and brings people close to wildlife.
Neenah Parks and Recreation Director Mike Kading said he doesn’t know how many people will attend Listen to the Loop, given the event is in its first year, but he’s hoping for a large turnout.
“They can see old friends and make new friends and really embrace what the trail has come to mean to our three communities,” he said.
Listen to the Loop is scheduled to run from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m., starting at Arrowhead Park and progressing to Fritse Park and Shepard Park.
“With the staggered fashion, people can make their way as they go,” Geiser said. “If they want to stay, they stay. If they want to move onto the next one, they move onto the next one.”
Organizers envision that Listen to the Loop will become an annual event and grow in scope in the coming years. Kading can see six locations, maybe more, that could host music and entertainment along Loop the Lake. Possible new sites include Neenah’s Herb and Dolly Smith Park, Evergreen Fox Crossing senior living community, Menasha’s Canal Commons Park and Neenah’s Cook Park.
“You could do two different sites within Arrowhead if you got creative,” Kading said.
Arrowhead Park
Fritse Park
Shepard Park
Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@usatodayco.com. Follow him on X at @DukeBehnke.
This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Neenah, Menasha, Fox Crossing unite for Listen to the Loop festival
Reporting by Duke Behnke, Appleton Post-Crescent / Appleton Post-Crescent
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
