On a sunny Friday afternoon, the southeast corner of Murray City Hall transformed into a lively celebration of local culture and history as the community gathered for the first Murray City Downtown Block Party. Coinciding with the May 2 grand opening of the newly restored Murray Museum, the event marked a milestone for the Murray City Downtown District and its ongoing effort to reimagine and revitalize the city’s historic core.

“This checked all, if not most of these boxes,” said Downtown District board member Clark Bullen, referring to the group’s mission. “Some of the purposes of the Murray City Downtown District are to promote local businesses, help revitalize our historic downtown, promote and support historic buildings and areas and promote awareness of historic revitalization efforts.”

While the idea of a community block party had been discussed in the past, Bullen credits committee member Janice Strobell with planting the initial seed. “An annual downtown Block party has always sounded like a great idea,” he said. “I want to say the original suggestion came from Janice Strobell…Doing it in conjunction with the grand reopening of a restored historic building makes a lot of sense with our mission.”

The Murray City Downtown District, a nonprofit founded by local business owner and resident Jenn Kikel-Lynn, was officially accepted into the Utah Main Street program in 2023. Kikel-Lynn created the organization to establish a Murray-only resource dedicated to preserving and promoting the city’s unique downtown identity. The group has since aligned itself with the objectives of Main Street America program, emphasizing local business support, historic preservation and community engagement.

“The mission of Utah Mainstreet and Mainstreet America have specific parameters that direct where we spend our efforts,” Bullen explained. “We are trying to make sure that all vendors are Murray based for the block party…and bringing awareness to revitalization plans instead of a more familiar place like Murray Park.”

Despite being a first-time endeavor, the event attracted dozens of vendors, artists and residents. Organizers relied on their collective experience planning other large-scale events, even if a downtown block party was new territory.

“I don’t think anyone on the committee has thrown a block party before,” Bullen admitted. “But there is a lot of collective knowledge, creativity and execution that we bring…it is hard to know how many people to plan for, so you have to plan for a lot and try your best to make that a reality.”

According to Bullen, organizers focused on outreach to Murray-based businesses and performers. “We had an idea of Murray businesses that we thought would be good vendors that we reached out to but have found a lot of great vendors from Murray as we spread the word,” he said. “The city helped us expand our reach by including the block party in the mayor’s newsletter, hoping to reach most, if not all Murray businesses.”

Beyond the day’s festivities, Bullen emphasized the event’s long-term purpose: to build community buy-in for a reinvigorated downtown Murray. “I hope visitors will see the potential in downtown and become invested in its future,” he said. “I hope downtown will become a place where they want to spend time. I hope they see the historic mansion renovated into the new museum as only the start of great things to come.”

Future plans, still in development, include the creation of a historic plaza that would be anchored by the museum site. “We have the best location in the heart of the valley. I hope our downtown becomes a premier destination,” Bullen added.

While specific next steps remain in the planning stages, the Downtown District hopes to build on the momentum generated by the block party. “In talking with vendors and citizens, there has been a wealth of ideas and feedback,” Bullen said.

For Bullen and his fellow volunteers, the event is about more than just a single afternoon of music and games. “I hope this party is a success and sets a precedent for very well attended annual block parties,” he said. “I am proud of my city and their efforts to restore historic buildings like the mansion into the museum and the Murray theater…I am just trying to spread the word and help make it successful as it deserves to be.”

As downtown Murray steps into the spotlight, organizers hope the block party becomes not just a tradition, but
a catalyst. λ