Celebrate Erie set for Aug. 15–17 in downtown Erie; city outlines lineup and safety plan

City of Erie officials on Thursday outlined plans for Celebrate Erie, the city’s three-day festival running Friday, Aug. 15, through Sunday, Aug. 17 in downtown Erie, saying the event will include live music, a marketplace, family programming and heightened public-safety measures.

The festival, which officials called the region’s largest, will occupy five blocks of State Street from Fourth to Ninth Streets and center on Perry Square. City Events Manager Gabby Watson said the event will include nearly 40 vendors, more than 70 bands and performances and a family district with activities and crafts in East Perry Square.

Watson, the city’s events manager, said, “Celebrate Erie will fill the 5 blocks of State Street from Fourth To Ninth and will be centered on Perry Square.” She said the marketplace will offer Erie-made artwork and locally grown produce and that the event’s family district will be sponsored by VNET.

Why it matters: city leaders said the festival supports downtown businesses and local artists and is free to attend thanks to sponsor support. The Erie County data center’s study from 2018 and 2019 showed Celebrate Erie generated $10,000,000 in regional economic impact in those two years, a figure officials said they expect to exceed in 2025.

Music and programming: the main stage — sponsored by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield and AHN Saint Vincent Hospital — will host nightly headliners. Officials listed the headliners and supporting acts and times: Friday, Aug. 15 — Russell Dickerson at 8 p.m., with Matt Teixter and the 1 Shots at 5:30 p.m. and Erie native Brenna Bone at 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 16 — Gym Class Heroes at 8 p.m., with Reminiscent at 5:30 p.m. and Pachata Rebelle at 6:30 p.m.; Sunday, Aug. 17 — Erie All Stars performing Beatles hits at 8 p.m., with the Erie Philharmonic supporting. Watson said a video screen at the Perry Square stage will project a live feed of the headliners each night to provide seating space for families and attendees with strollers.

Family and accessibility: officials said East Perry Square will host family-oriented activities and games, and the Center for Hearing and Deaf Services will provide ASL interpreters for the headlining acts. Children’s activities will run roughly between 11 a.m. and 7 p.m., and organizers said attendees can obtain printed maps and schedules at an information tent during the event.

Vendors and events: organizers said West Perry Square will host local food vendors and that the festival will include the returning Chalk Walk with 27 murals sponsored by Marquette Savings Bank. The Erie Police Athletic League and the Spoons League will host a basketball tournament on Saturday, with a three-point contest available Friday and Sunday. Watson said the event will feature a marketplace of nearly 40 vendors and more than 70 performers; a full lineup and map are on celebrateeerie.com.

Public safety and restrictions: Police Chief Dan Smizarni described an expanded community-policing deployment and other measures. “Each year, we take Celebrate Erie security very seriously and deploy a community policing strategy to ensure public safety, and it includes additional lighting, cameras, drones, water walls, private security, and an extensive community policing presence, including a detail of uniformed police officers,” Smizarni said. He said the city is partnering with the Pennsylvania State Police, the Erie County Sheriff’s Office and the Mill Creek Police Department.

Smizarni listed items not permitted for safety reasons — bicycles, skateboards, scooters and fireworks — and asked attendees to leave pets at home. Officials also said the main stage area between Fourth and Fifth Street will be standing-room only for headliners; strollers, wagons and seating are not permitted in that main stage area for safety, and a live video feed and seating area are available in Perry Square for those who need it. The mayor stressed that children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult, parent or guardian.

Sponsors and logistics: city officials thanked a long list of sponsors cited during the briefing, including Erie Insurance, PNC Bank, National Fuel, Marquette Savings Bank, Coca-Cola (the official soft-drink sponsor), Logistics Plus, Lake Erie Ale Trail, Allegheny Beverage, the Pennsylvania Lottery, Sunbelt, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, AHN Saint Vincent Hospital, First National Bank, Erie Philharmonic, Erie Parking Authority and Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority. Officials said sponsor support keeps Celebrate Erie free to the public.

Related city outreach and upcoming events: the Department of Planning and Neighborhood Resources will seek feedback on Erie Outside, the city’s comprehensive recreation, parks and open-spaces plan, with staff on site in the Boston Store lobby on Saturday, Aug. 16, from noon to 5 p.m. The mayor also noted other upcoming community events: the final 2025 814 concert series show on Aug. 10 at Wayne Park and a Sounds of Summer concert on Aug. 11 at Curryshell Apartments, and he reminded residents that Saint Paul’s Italian Festival runs Aug. 8–10 at 16th and Walnut Streets.

Organizers urged attendees to consult celebrateeerie.com for the full schedule, map and sponsor list and said city staff and volunteers will be on site throughout the weekend to assist attendees.