EVERETT, FEB. 25: Everett’s premier downtown summer festival, Salty Sea Days, is no more.
The Downtown Everett Association (DEA), the organization that puts on the festival, will shift focus to better promote and advocate for downtown businesses, Marketing and Events Manager for DEA, Amber Peterson said.
The new summer celebration, dubbed Summer in the City, will coincide with the Schack Art Center’s Fresh Paint Festival the weekend of Aug. 14-16.
Salty Sea Days was established in 1970 and was an annual event in June that included car shows, boat races, a parade, a carnival and a fireworks show.
The Everett City Council voted in October 2003 to stop the festival’s $70,000-a-year guaranteed subsidy, which was taken from the city hotel tax budget. The Salty Sea Days Association, which ran the festival, disbanded after the loss of funding. The DEA revived the festival in 2022.
Salty Sea Days is a well-loved event, Peterson said, but after internal conversations and feedback from business owners, DEA decided that the event didn’t fully align with their mission.
“We always want our retail, our restaurants, to feel like they are benefiting from downtown events and new visitors,” Peterson said. “And so we are hoping that this is a nice marriage of an event that attracts people from outside of Everett, but also doesn’t provide everything they need, so they never leave our event footprint, they will explore what else downtown has.”
The goal of the DEA is to support economic vitality, stewarding public spaces and promoting local experiences in the downtown core. Other events the DEA puts on include Sip & Shop, Planting Day and the Cookie Crawl.
As a nonprofit DEA receives funds through donations, sponsors, grants, and the Main Street Tax Credit Incentive Program (MSTCIP).
The epicenter of Summer in the City will be Wetmore Plaza, and will include local performances, nightly headliners, a beer garden, and activities for kids. Businesses are encouraged to offer specials and sales during the weekend.
The goal is to get as many of the business owners downtown to participate in the event, Peterson said.
“My hope is that we are holding on to the things that were really popular and are leaning into something that will not only be beneficial for attendees but also for the downtown businesses,” Peterson said.
More details on Summer in the City will be available next month. Check in with the DEA website and social pages to follow event updates.
