Overview
- Attendance reached only a few thousand, short of a 20,000 goal, with rain, a quiet workday corridor, and New Year’s timing cited for the dip.
- The 2nd Street celebration featured sets by Martin Luther McCoy, Tiffany Austin, Deuce Eclipse, and Otis McDonald, plus dance lessons, a fashion pop-up, a Winterwear Pooch Pageant, and a vendor market.
- Mayor Daniel Lurie credited the series with boosting foot traffic for merchants and raising visibility for artists as part of the city’s comeback push.
- Organizers say the 21 Downtown First Thursdays to date have drawn roughly 300,000 attendees and generated about $28 million for local businesses.
- Vendors and attendees described steady crowds building through the evening and voiced optimism, with one food vendor emphasizing the need for safer, cleaner streets to sustain momentum.