Celebrate Independence Day in Downtown Arlington with live music, kid-friendly activities, food trucks and a spectacular firework display on Sunday, July 3.
Festivities, which are free and open to the public, start at 6 p.m. July 3 at Parks and Recreation Department’s annual Light Up Arlington. This year’s celebration, which encompasses 57 acres surrounding City Hall and the George W. Hawkes Downtown Library, includes some of the top musical acts in the Dallas-Fort Worth region, vendors, food trucks and plenty of kid-friendly fun.
Bands will perform at four stages around Downtown, starting with 6 p.m. concerts outside the Arlington Music Hall and at “Boomtown” outside the Grease Monkey restaurant, a 6:30 p.m. concert outside of City Tower at 101 S. Mesquite St., and a 7 p.m. concert at Levitt Pavilion Arlington.
Face painting and a bubble bus are among activities planned for the little ones at the Downtown Library. Vendors and at least eight food trucks, featuring a variety of food and desserts, will be set in “Firecracker Alley,” which will be located in the parking lot on the west side of City Hall on Abram Street between Oak and Pecan streets. Food trucks are also expected to be available near activities held at the library, City Tower and Grease Monkey.
The fireworks display, which lasts about 20 minutes, is scheduled to start at 9:50 p.m. and will be set to music on 95.9 The Ranch FM. Fireworks will be shot from the roof of City Tower, which is located east of City Hall.
Light Up Arlington Tips:
• Free public parking is available throughout Downtown, but visitors need to be aware of some planned parking lot closures and street closures around City Hall, 101 Center and the City Tower. Some streets will close for Light Up Arlington festivities as early as 2 p.m. on Sunday. Download the Waze app for updated road closures and driving directions.
• Access to and from the 101 Center Parking Garage and parking spots immediately surrounding the building will be strictly prohibited beginning at 6 pm until approximately 11 pm. Any vehicles in the parking garage or in the parking spots surrounding the building will not be allowed to leave once the event has started.
• All vehicles must be removed from the City Tower parking lot by 5 p.m. on Sunday, July 3. All vehicles left in the lot after 5 p.m. will be towed to the northeast corner of the lot and access to those vehicles will be denied until the firework display is over and the lot has been reopened to the public at approximately 1 a.m. July 4.
• The City Hall parking lot at Pecan and Abram streets will be closed on Saturday, July 3. All vehicles must be removed from this lot by 7 a.m. that day to make way for Light Up Arlington activities.
• Look for signage with QR codes during Light Up Arlington for the latest information about events and activities.