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Join a tradition of artistic excellence by submitting an artist application for the 37th Annual Downtown Festival & Art Show. Recognized as one of the top fine art shows in the country, the festival is sponsored by the City of Gainesville Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department. On Saturday, Dec. 1 and Sunday, Dec. 2, more than 240 artists will display original oils and acrylics, vibrant watercolors, captivating sculptures, dazzling jewelry, decorative ceramics and vivid photography in historic downtown Gainesville. They will compete for $20,000 in cash prizes. Applications for the Downtown Festival & Art Show are available upon request at 352-393-8536 or online at http://www.gvlculturalaffairs.org. The application deadline is Thursday, May 17, 2018.

The Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department announces the highly anticipated 2018 “Free Fridays” season concert schedule. The public is invited to join us for our annual series of free, family-friendly concerts at the Bo Diddley Plaza in downtown Gainesville.

Participants in the Foundations Academy After-School Program combined their efforts to create an Earth Day-themed project to promote litter-reduction at Albert “Ray” Massey (Westside) Park and Recreation Center. The Foundations program is run by the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department (PRCA) for children in first through eighth grade and focuses on the Character Counts® curriculum, which teaches the Six Pillars of Character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

The Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department, in cooperation with Shake Rag Cultural Center, Inc., welcomes Grammy Award winning musician Peter Rowan to the next Jewel Box Concert at the Thomas Center to be held Thursday, May 3. Opening for Rowan is singer/songwriter and virtuoso guitarist Sam Pacetti. Doors open at 6 p.m., and the concert begins at 7 p.m. General admission is $30, and VIP seating is $40 at the door. Seating is limited, but tickets may be purchased in advance online at www.evansmediasource.com.

The Southwest Downtown Parking Garage (105 SW Third St.) is participating in the April 27 Artwalk Gainesville between 7-9 p.m. A number of artists have painted murals in the parking garage, which will be showcased during the event. Gainesville partnered with the Urban Revitalization Project to create an open air museum within the garage for patrons and the public to view art in a new way. New murals by Maria Delvs, Monty Welt, Alix Mathia and Alexander Venable can be viewed, while live musical performances by Pishima Calloway and DJ King Bada will be heard. Radha’s Kitchen will have vegan food available for purchase.

Admission is free and open to the public, so bring your family and friends to see the wonderful new additions to the garage. To see all the participants of this month's Artwalk Gainesville, visit www.artwalkgainesville.com. Information on the Urban Revitalization Project is available at www.URProject.org.

Please join the Department of Doing (Planning Division), in conjunction with the University of Florida’s Historic Preservation Program, for a public presentation wrapping up the year-long, grant-funded mid-century survey. The presentation is Wednesday, April 25 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Matheson History Museum, which is located at 513 E. University Ave. in Gainesville.

City of Gainesville officials anticipate that severe weather conditions, including temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit during evening hours, Monday, April 16. The anticipated temperatures will lead to the continued activation of the city's Cold Night Shelter (CNS) Program, and it is expected to remain in effect until overnight low temperatures rise above 45 F. The CNS program normally runs from Nov. 1 through March 31.

Want to discover a new activity? The Gainesville Chain Hawks are hosting an event, Discs n’ Dogs, to introduce people to the sport of disc golf. The event is from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Saturday, April 28 at Northside Park, located at 5701 NW 34th Blvd. Participants will receive a free disc to play with and hot dogs for refreshments. Experienced players will be available to demonstrate the sport and show visitors around the park’s disc golf course.

Gainesville Mayor Lauren Poe is joining mayors across the country in encouraging residents to make the long-term commitment to conserve their water resources more wisely by taking part in the annual Wyland National Mayor’s Challenge for Water Conservation. In return, residents will be registered to win $5,000 toward their home utility payments, water saving fixtures and hundreds of other prizes. Plus, one lucky charity will receive a 2018 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid to help them serve the community.

The City of Gainesville Housing & Community Development Division (HCD) is hosting a series of public meetings to solicit input on the 2018-2022 Five Year Consolidated Plan and 2018-2019 Annual Action Plan. The Consolidated Plan is a five-year plan that provides direction on how the City of Gainesville will spend Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funds received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Housing and Community Development Division will host three public workshops to ask residents how they would like to see the CDBG and HOME money spent to improve eligible neighborhoods and provide critical community services to eligible residents.