Marion bringing movies to city parks all summer

MARION — The city of Marion is turning its city parks into outdoor movie theaters throughout the summer.

The Marion Parks and Recreation Department is introducing a new, free traveling movie program called “Movies on the Move.”

Between May and September, on the third Tuesday of the month, beginning May 17, the department will bring an outdoor movie to select Marion parks.

The movies are scheduled to begin about 8 p.m. and attendees are encouraged to bring chairs and blankets as well as food and drink.

“The goal was to figure out a way to break down some of those possible geographical and travel barriers that might prohibit people from attending events in some of our more popular locations around the city such as Lowe Park and City Square Park,” said Recreation Supervisor Tony Ireland. “It’s an attempt to be more equitable with our services by bringing the entertainment to them.”

Ireland said he feels really good about the idea and what it can add to the city’s already robust summer programming.

“With this being our first year, we wanted to make sure that we tried to have a variety of movies that might interest different demographics,” Ireland said. “We wanted to try something a little different and provide some early week entertainment as there are always a lot of offerings Thursday through Sunday.”

Ireland said he’s also curious as to what level of turnout the city will see for the screenings.

“I would say our biggest question mark right now is how people will respond to this initially,” Ireland said. “I’m excited for people to kick back and put their worries aside for a couple of hours and just enjoy themselves and our beautiful parks… maybe even meet some new people from their neighborhood and form some new friendships.”

The Movies on the Move summer-screening tour:

Summer concert series return for 2022

Also, Marion’s long-running concert series, Marion by Moonlight and Uptown Getdown return for another year.

The June Marion by Moonlight concert series will return to Lowe Park for the 2022 season. Both concert series moved to Lowe last year from City Square Park due to distance-keeping needs from the COVID-19 pandemic.

This is the 26th year for the Marion by Moonlight series. Concerts start at 6 p.m.

Uptown Getdown in August will return to City Square Park as Uptown construction between the Seventh Avenue streetscape project and the Broad and Main development wrap up later this summer.

In 2020, Uptown Getdown hit the road, bringing concerts to various neighborhoods around Marion. But now, the concerts will be anchored at City Square Park. Concerts start at 5:30 p.m.

Uptown Marion Market

The Uptown Marion Market returns to City Square Park as well.

Last year, the market took place on a city-owned parking lot at Eighth Avenue and 12th Street due to all of the Uptown construction.

Now, Seventh Avenue’s new festival street will be put to use, allowing the market to take place at the park as well as along the street. Marion Chamber President Jill Ackerman previously said the idea is to also drive people into the local businesses nearby.

This year, visitors can expect more than 30 vendors over four dates this summer. Vendors will offer fresh produce, baked goods, Iowa native wines, specialty foods and a wide selection of artisan items.

(All dates are 8 a.m. to noon)

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