Helper City council members and various members of the community gathered at the Helper Civic Auditorium on Thursday evening for a scheduled council meeting. At this meeting, updates about future events in Helper were given by numerous individuals.
Ashley Hardy began the updates by speaking with the council members about the First Friday event. The next First Friday will take place on Helper’s Main Street on Sept. 1. Hardy requested permission from the council members to close down a section of Main Street in order for people to bring their dogs for a dog parade/costume contest.
Doggy pick-up bags will be provided by the organizers of the First Friday event. Not only for the purpose of safety, the closing of the street will hopefully draw more people’s eyes to the happenings of First Friday and persuade them to join in. The requested time would be from 5:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. The only counsel the council members had for the organizers was to ensure that they did not block the fire station or police station so that official vehicles were free to come and go.
Lenise Peterman then gave an SDAT update to council members. Peterman stated that she had emailed a final schedule to the council members and had printed versions for anyone who wanted one. Included in the packet she provided, Peterman informed the council that there was a description of the experts that will be in Helper from September 6-8. This list will also be posted on the Helper Revitalization’s website so that all can be aware of dates and times.
There will also be material provided for the community to know exactly what the SDAT grant is. Bumper stickers were also provided to the council members by Peterman, who stated that they will be selling them at the upcoming festival as a fundraiser for the city. The SDAT experts will be stationed in the old Wells Fargo building for the duration of their visit.
Kate Kilpatrick-Miller then spoke with the council members to give them a final update on the Helper Arts, Music and Film Festival that will be taking place later this month. Kilpatrick updated the council on times for the gallery stroll, when the street will be closed off, how many vendors would be in attendance and more. She also informed the council that the appropriate liquor licenses for the event had been secured.
This year, the dance performance that will take place will be to honor the late Melissa Anast, who recently passed away and was a staple in the community. There will be a small fee associated with this activity that will go to benefit a foundation that is being created in Anast’s name. The dance performance will take place on Saturday during the festival at 5 p.m. and tickets will be $10 at the door.
Kilpatrick-Miller then thanked the council members for their help and stated that she believes this year will be a great festival.