New Bedford Gains a Brand New Festival

After two years of clear calendars, we're all excited to get back to socializing and attending major events on the SouthCoast.

We are seeing a return of some of the tried and true events in New Bedford such as The Feast, the Whaling City Festival, and Taste of SouthCoast, but the city will also host a brand new event next month.

The new event is called 20mi2 (pronounced twenty-em-eye-two). The name of the event originates from the 20 square miles that make up New Bedford.

The goal is to celebrate each part of the city over three days, June 9, 10 and 11.

One interesting event scheduled for the weekend will take place in the area of School Street and Union Street, where 50 tables will be placed end to end. The tables will be set with 500 place-settings. Visitors will be encouraged to bring their own picnic food or pick up some takeout from a city restaurant.

"Pretty much everywhere you go in the city, you'll be greeted by live music, including places like Custom House Square," says Beatriz Oliveira, the creator and producer of 20mi2.  "We'll have bicycle tours of the City of New Bedford. The Buttonwood Park Zoo will be free of charge to the public."

Oliveira says that they will focus events around different parts of the city each of the three days.

"We're just celebrating the arts and culture of the city," says Oliveira.  "We're starting small, but we're hoping someday we'll turn this festival into an event similar to that of SXSW in Austin."

The presenters encourage city residents and neighbors to invite friends and family of all ages, and from all over, to come to New Bedford to be a part of this dynamic citywide celebration. For program details and more information visit www.20mi2.com