CHELSEA – The city of Chelsea is gearing up for its second annual ChelseaFest and the Big Kaboom event on Saturday, June 30. Mayor Tony Picklesimer said the event will began at 5 p.m. in the field behind the Dairy Queen and feature live music, a parade, food vendors, fireworks and more.

According to Picklesimer, ChelseaFest is the city’s way of celebrating Independence Day with the entire community.

“This is a community-wide Fourth of July event to celebrate our country,” Picklesimer said.

Picklesimer said the Red, White and Blue Kids Bike Parade will take place early during the event, and a Kid Zone with inflatables will be located in the middle of the field.

Picklesimer also said more food trucks and vendors will be onsite to capacitate all of the people expected to attend.

The event’s headliner, COMPOSITIONZ, will take the main stage at 7 p.m., followed by a fireworks display at 9 p.m. At 9:30 p.m., COMPOSITIONZ will begin performing again. Picklesimer said this is the second year that COMPOSITIONZ will perform a set at ChelseaFest.

“They’re just a very outstanding band. They’re an ’80s and ’90s rhythm and blues band with some Motown mixed in,” Picklesimer said. “What little bit they did play before it started raining, people really enjoyed.”

Additionally, Picklesimer said ChelseaFest will also provide volunteer opportunities for members of local scout troops and the Chelsea Citizens Observer Patrol.

Originally, an event known only as the Big Kaboom was held in the city. When city officials began to recognize the need for Chelsea to have a large festival, Picklesimer said they decided to account for the Big Kaboom’s growth by combining it with the new event.

“Chelsea has done a fireworks show for the past 18 years, and it has always been held in the Chelsea Park Subdivision,” Picklesimer said. “We just simply outgrew it.”

Unfortunately, Picklesimer said, the first ChelseaFest in 2017 ended early after a thunderstorm blew through the area.

“The first annual ChelseaFest didn’t last but about an hour until the rain hit,” Picklesimer said.

However, within that hour, Picklesimer said he noticed that ChelseaFest had a higher turnout than expected.

“We felt like there were 2,000 people there at about 7 p.m. before it started raining,” Picklesimer said. “Even though the festival was abbreviated, there was such a great turnout and so many nice things were said about it.”

For many who come out, Picklesimer said ChelseaFest will serve as a social event with something to offer the entire family.

“Our intention is for it to be a family friendly event,” Picklesimer said. “It’s a great opportunity for neighbors to meet neighbors and enjoy a beautiful summer night.”