Arts in the Alley | Recap

Arts in the Alley has been a Grove City tradition since 1980, when it began as a small art show in an alley in downtown Grove City. Over the years, it has grown into one of the community’s biggest annual events. And it really is about so much more than walking through booths and shopping for art. It’s artists, makers, local businesses, food, live music, kids creating their own art, community organizations, schools, marching bands and families filling the streets of Town Center for an entire weekend.

That community aspect ended up being one of my favorite parts of the whole experience.

If you’re someone who gets overwhelmed trying to see EVERYTHING at a festival, Friday night might be my favorite little Arts in the Alley hack. The festival kicked off at 5 p.m. on Friday, and while the first night was only three hours, it was actually the perfect amount of time to get a feel for everything. I wandered through the 100+ vendor booths, scoped out places I knew I wanted to come back to, grabbed food, and spent some time listening to live music at the Heartland Stage.

There’s something nice about that first evening before Saturday gets really busy. You don't have to feel like you need to accomplish everything. Grab dinner from one of the food vendors or a local restaurant, walk around, listen to some music, and make mental notes for the rest of the weekend.

Think of Friday as your Arts in the Alley preview night.

Saturday was the day I dedicated to the kids, and if you're visiting Arts in the Alley as a family, this is absolutely the day I would prioritize. And it starts with the Arts in the Alley Community Parade. The parade itself has been part of the festival since 1990, and 2026 marked its 37th year. This year's theme celebrated America's 250th anniversary.

The weather wasn’t ideal for the entire festival weekend, but we got such a great pocket of weather for the parade.

And WHAT. A. PARADE.

Marching bands, cheer squads, local businesses, community organizations, the Aladdin Shrine, special characters, and more just kept coming down Broadway. It lasted close to two hours for us, and it was so much fun watching the community partners get their moment to shine. And man oh man, did they bring the candy.

Important Parade Advice: Bring a Candy Bag

I had heard the candy situation at this parade was legit. They were not kidding. If you're taking kids next year, have a bag ready. Or honestly, go big and bring the pillowcase.

Watch Our Arts in the Alley Parade Recap over on Instagram
Beyond the candy, though, the parade was probably one of the moments when it really hit me just how community-driven Grove City is. Families lined Broadway. Kids were cheering. Local organizations and businesses were everywhere. There were chairs set up all along the route, and this feeling that everyone knew this was one of the weekends to be downtown. The parade begins at Southwest Boulevard and Broadway, travels along Broadway, and ends on Park Street before the railroad tracks.

This may be one of my favorite tips from the whole weekend. Get downtown early, find your parking spot, and then head to Broadway Standard for a southern-style home-cooking breakfast before the parade. We sat outside on the patio, ate breakfast, and watched everyone arrive and start setting up their chairs along Broadway. There was so much excitement building around us that breakfast almost felt like part of the event.

And GET THE PANCAKES. They're huge, delicious, and the service was great. Then when you're finished, you're already downtown, your car is parked, and you're ready for the parade.

Saturday gets a lot of attention because of the parade and family activities, but don't sleep on Sunday. Kids Fun Street was still open, so there was plenty for families to do, but I used Sunday differently. This was my day to go back for anything I'd been eyeing from the vendors and, most importantly, slow down and explore the actual art shows.

Arts in the Alley featured six juried shows in 2026: Craft, Fine Art, Photography, Quilt, Youth Art, and the Easel Award. I especially loved exploring the artwork inside City Hall. There were so many different styles and subjects, but some of my favorites were the artists' depictions of Grove City.

And then I learned there was a reason for that!

The 2026 Easel Award theme was “Life in Grove City.” Artists were challenged to create work reflecting Grove City's people, places, experiences, traditions, natural environment or community character. The winning artist receives a $2,000 purchase award, and the piece becomes part of the City of Grove City's permanent art collection. After spending the weekend outside watching this community come together, there was something really cool about walking inside City Hall and seeing artists interpret that same community through their work.

The different shows are spread throughout the festival area, so this is something I would intentionally leave time for rather than assuming you'll stumble across everything. The Craft Show includes handmade work across a variety of categories. The Fine Art Show fills City Hall's Council Chambers with original 2D and 3D pieces, while the Photography Show includes advanced, emerging, and even mobile photography divisions. And the Quilt Show, held at St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church, is another longtime part of the festival.

But parents, there's another one I think you'll want to know about. Your Kids Can Enter Their Art! The Youth Art Show is open to students in kindergarten through 12th grade, and kids do NOT have to attend South-Western City Schools to participate. Students can enter artwork or photography, with age divisions beginning at K–2. In 2026, there was no entry fee, and students could submit up to two pieces. I absolutely love that. It's one thing to bring kids to a festival to look at art. It's another to give young artists an opportunity to have their own work displayed as part of the festival. If you have a kid who loves creating, this is definitely something I'd keep an eye on when information comes out for next year.

Another bonus: public parking is free throughout Town Center. The official festival parking options include the large lots north of Broadway between Park Street and Grant Avenue, parking around the Grove City Library, the gravel lot at the northeast edge of Town Center, lots along Park Street on both sides of Broadway, and parking near the Grove City Museum. My biggest advice, especially on parade morning, is simply to come early. Grab your parking spot, get breakfast or coffee, and enjoy being downtown before everything gets going.

If You're Planning for Arts in the Alley Next Year...

After going all three days, this would probably be my ideal plan:

Friday: Come after work, explore the vendors, grab dinner, and listen to live music.

Saturday: Get there EARLY. Park, grab breakfast at Broadway Standard, and find your parade spot. Bring a candy bag for the kids! After the parade, make it your big family day with Kids Fun Street, vendors, food, and entertainment.

Sunday: Slow it down. Go back for anything you decided you couldn't leave without, explore the art shows, and spend time actually looking at the pieces you may have rushed past on Saturday.

Could you do Arts in the Alley in one day? Absolutely. But after experiencing all three, I loved getting to see the different side of the festival that each day brought.

Arts in the Alley was much bigger than I expected. But when I think back on the weekend, the size of it isn't really what stuck with me. It was how much of Grove City was represented in one place. The artists. The small businesses. The schools and marching bands. The community organizations. The volunteers. Families lining Broadway for the parade. Kids sitting at tables making art. Local musicians taking the stage. People filling Town Center and supporting all of it.

We've only lived in Grove City for a few months, and there are still so many things we're discovering about our new community. But I already love that we're raising the girls somewhere that shows up for local businesses, supports the arts, and creates traditions like this for families to grow up with.

There were some less-than-perfect weather moments throughout the weekend, and people still showed up. That's what I think I'll remember most from our first Arts in the Alley.

Our first one is officially in the books, and I already know it won't be our last.

So if you missed it this year, put Arts in the Alley on your fall list for next year.

And seriously...

Don't forget the candy bag.

Save the Date: September 17 - 19, 2027! For schedules, artist applications, and other festival information, visit the Grove City Area Chamber of Commerce website.