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E-mail This StoryA true American Fourth of July celebration wouldn’t be complete without fireworks, and the City of Frisco is hosting the biggest fireworks show in all of North Texas at this year’s Freedom Fest at Pizza Hut Park and Simpson Plaza.
The fireworks will be choreographed to music and a video for those watching inside of Pizza Hut Park, but will be visible for hundreds of surrounding residents and visitors.
“The big star of the entire night is the biggest fireworks show in North Texas,” Frisco Director of Communications Dana Baird said.
The event will also feature several new attractions and expanded ones, and the night will finish with a concert from The Temptations Review featuring Dennis Edward, one of the last surviving members of the original group.
“We like to select a musical group that is family oriented and something that appeals to largely our baby-boomer generation, because that’s largely what we have here in Frisco,” Baird said. “We also like to select a group that has a string of hits that people like to sing along to.”
Garland resident Bill Lipman and his family have bypassed several city celebrations that are closer to his home over the years to attend Freedom Fest. Lipman said he and his wife, LeAnn, especially enjoy the headlining concert.
“There’s always been a band playing that we wanted to hear,” he said. “Some of the bands that have been there are bands that LeAnn and I grew up with when we were younger, so we just loved it.”
Lipman also said that his family enjoys a “Taste of Frisco,” where visitors may try food from a variety of restaurants for a small fee at each booth.
This year’s selection will be even bigger. Last year’s “Taste of Frisco” topped out at 11 vendors, this year there will be 28. Visitors may sample food ranging from Italian to Mexican to desserts.
“Taste of Frisco” is part of the “Party in the Plaza” at Simpson Plaza, which will also include a community stage featuring 16 local artists, a hometown hero exhibit to honor Frisco’s police officers and firefighters, and an expanded Children’s Expo.
Children may enjoy the annual favorites, and this year the city has added two bungee games, a rock climbing wall, and a train ride. Tickets for inflatable activities start at $1, and an all-day jump pass may be purchased for $20. Many of the activities, such as face-painting, are free.
Visitors may also send their good wishes to American troops at a new video booth. The city will compile the messages and send them overseas.
“So often during the holidays we hear messages from the troops overseas on the TV stations, but we thought it would be fun to give Frisco residents 10 to 15 seconds to say hello to the troops,” Baird said.
A free shuttle will transport visitors from the Simpson Plaza area to the Frisco Heritage Museum, which is hosting the city’s first “Old-fashioned Fourth” celebration. Visitors may participate in sack races and a bean-bag toss. A barbershop quartet will perform at the gazebo.
At 6 p.m., Major League Soccer team FC Dallas will take on the Kansas City Wizards at Pizza Hut Park. Fans may purchase a $10 game ticket that includes admission for The Temptations concert, fireworks, and opening concert by Freddy. Those wishing to skip the soccer match may purchase a $5 ticket for the following activities.
Freddy will take the stage at 8:30 p.m., and will be followed by the fireworks show around 9:30 p.m. The Temptations will perform after the fireworks to allow parents with young children to leave after the show. City organizers also hope the earlier fireworks will help ease traffic congestion because visitors will leave at different times.
A parking shuttle bus will not be available this year, but visitors may park in the open lots surrounding Frisco Square and at Pizza Hut Park for free.
All events start at 4 p.m. For information, visit www.FriscoFreedomFest.org.
