CASSELBERRY, Fla. – On the second Friday of every month, Lake Concord Park comes alive with food, music and art at Casselberry Food Trucks. The city sets up local vendors in the parking lot beside city hall and fills the park with free live performances.
“We’re like the little city that could,” said Casselberry event coordinator Lynn Hoppes. “We’re just really happy to have the opportunity to give back to the community in many ways, by providing a lot of free events that people can just walk to. People can ride their bike to. People can drive to. The hope is that we get a lot of people saying ‘maybe I might consider moving to Casselberry.’”
Families and longtime residents say the tradition has become part of their lives.
“We’ve been coming here since our kids were in elementary school,” one attendee said. “They are now graduated from high school, graduating from college. So we’ve been coming here for decades. We just walk here so it’s a nice walk too.”
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September’s headliner was Orlando indie rocker Cat Ridgeway, who has toured across the country. She used live looping to make her solo show sound like a full band.
“They happened upon me somehow,” Ridgeway said. “Thank you for paying attention to the local scene, Casselberry. This is one of my favorite places. I mean, look at that tree, the moss hanging, it’s so aggressively Florida.”
The city said each food truck event typically draws eight to ten vendors and hundreds of residents. Admission and parking are free, and visitors are encouraged to bring chairs or blankets to enjoy the night.
The monthly food truck nights are only one part of Casselberry’s focus on community events. This Saturday, Lake Concord Park will host the Latin Jazz and Art Festival, featuring Grammy winners Nestor Torres and Aymeé Nuviola along with Miami-based ensemble Cortadito. Traditional Latin dance, food and art exhibits are also planned.
Hoppes said the city puts on 12 to 15 live music events each year in the park.
“We want people to be proud of where they live, where they shop, where they play,” he said. “We want everyone to be proud of what we do. We’re all in this together.”