The Denison Main Street, Inc. board of directors and the City of Denison Main Street advisory board voted to approve a preliminary calendar of events for 2026, including a progressive dinner in March, a visitor-center first‑anniversary celebration in May and a new music festival called Railroad and Rhythms, while noting the boards may remove an early June date depending on construction at Heritage Park.

Board member (Speaker 3) said the March event will be a ticketed “progressive dinner” in which attendees move between restaurants for different courses, and that May will include “kind of like a 1 year celebration of the visitor center.” Speaker 3 also described the new festival name: “So we call it the Railroad and Rhythms, music festival.”

The calendar drew practical concerns about venue readiness for outdoor concerts. Board member (Speaker 4) warned that construction schedules at Heritage Park could conflict with Music on Main and proposed removing the June 5 date to allow more setup time: "If we just left off the June 5 date, then that would put it back to 7 and would give us a little more time." The board discussed a two‑venue contingency—plan A at Heritage Park and plan B at Forest Park—but members said using both locations simultaneously would complicate banners, vendor placement and sound logistics.

After discussion, Board member (Speaker 2) moved to accept the calendar “as proposed.” Board member (Speaker 4) seconded. The motion carried; the board approved the 2026 calendar while noting staff will likely remove the first listed week (the early June date) and will confirm final locations and sound plans before the season.

The approved calendar listed multiple signature events and tentative dates: the March progressive dinner (board discussion referenced March 21 as the target), a May visitor‑center anniversary (title not finalized), Railroad and Rhythms (a downtown multi‑stage music festival with Heritage Park intended as the main stage), and a proposal to move Christmas at the Depot to the same day as the loft tour so Santa arrivals and photo opportunities align with that event.

The board also heard a broader special‑projects report on music‑friendly programming and festival planning. Staff and volunteers said the aim is to involve downtown businesses as satellite music venues (for example, a jazz stage at existing venues) and to host a main final show in Heritage Park once park work is complete; organizers set Sept. 12 (2026) as a likely slot for the larger music‑friendly festival next year to avoid conflicts with nearby regional events.

Members agreed to keep the calendar on the record and to adopt the dates now so promotion and vendor outreach can proceed; they instructed staff to publish the calendar with an editorial note that the board may remove the first week if construction or sound issues make that date infeasible. No numeric roll‑call was recorded in the transcript; the minutes reflect a motion, a second and a unanimous verbal “Aye.”

The board also approved minutes from its July 24, 2025 meeting for both Denison Main Street, Inc. and the advisory board before taking up the calendar.

The board plans to finalize event details, vendor assignments and technical sound plans in coming months and said staff will return to the board with confirmed sites and any date changes before promotional materials are finalized.