The Shepherd Express is joining with NEWaukee for the upcoming fourth annual Urban Island Beach Party. This year, the Shepherd is adding to the fun by running its popular Street Eats Mobile Food Festival as part of the party.
Urban Island Beach Party will be held at the beautiful Lakeshore State Park—a breathtaking lakefront vantage point of the city virtually underneath the skyline. Says NEWaukee President Angela Damiani, “Lakeshore State Park is actually an incredible resource in the heart of our urban center, but because there’s no building, most people can’t even really place it on a map. We’re trying to help bring awareness to the fact that this incredible asset exists and that it lacks the funds it needs to build a facility where educational programming and recreational activities could be held.”
The Shepherd’s Street Eats contribution to this free, family friendly event will feature more than 20 different local food trucks, including Gouda Girls, Pete’s Pops, Hard Wood Café, Streetza Pizza and YellowBellies, plus a gigantic pig roast. Food (including the pig) and water will be available for purchase with food tickets. In addition to delicious fare as well as adult beverages provided by Leinenkugel Brewing Company, the entertainment lineup is sure to have something for everybody. Live music, art creation stations, a “find a flamingo” contest, kayaking, stand-up paddle boarding and canoe lessons, and hula hooping and limbo contests are just a few of the fun activities that will be available. And if you arrive to the island via bus, bike or boat (Wheel & Sprocket will provide a bike valet) you will receive a free beer. As Street Eats Coordinator Christian Caflisch says: “With the money that say a kayaker saves on beer, he/she can purchase some more pig!”
Urban Island Beach Party, which is expected to see around 7,500 attendees, is just one of the 160-plus events that NEWaukee hosts every year to engage local citizens. Shepherd Express Marketing Coordinator Heather Pechacek adds, “We’ve worked together before, helping each other out and sponsoring each other’s events, but we’ve never partnered together on an event. Our mission is very similar to NEWaukee and it’s really exciting to work with a group that is very passionate about the event and promoting Milwaukee.”
“I think including the Shepherd’s Street Eats is going to add a whole new layer of experience that we haven’t had in the past,” says Damiani of this year’s Urban Beach Party. “I think people are going to enjoy having different food options, of sampling multiple things. It’s been brilliant to partner with the Shepherd and we’re extremely excited for the event.” NEWaukee, a 5-year-old social architecture firm, is working “to make Milwaukee the most awesome city on the planet,” she explains.
Urban Island Beach Party/Street Eats will be held Friday, Aug. 1, 4-11 p.m. at Lakeshore State Park (located by the shores of the Summerfest grounds and Discovery World). For more information, visit www.newaukee.com and www.expressmilwaukee.com.
Interested in volunteering at the event? Contact Amanda Sullivan at Amanda@shepex.com or 414-292-3801.
