Positively Allegan and Ropes Courses Inc. will be hosting a New Year’s Eve party Monday, Dec. 31, by counting down to midnight with Michigan’s largest ball drop from the Riverfront Plaza zipline tower and jump starting the New Year with a fireworks display.
The second annual Allegan NYE party will also have a new feature this year. “The Ice Brigade” will be revving up their chain saws to unveil a cool creation for Allegan revelers.
“Ice Brigade” is the name of The Food Network series that features ice gurus Randy Finch and Derek Maxfield who own and operate Ice Sculptures Ltd. in Grand Rapids.
Together with their team, they design and execute out-of-this-world ice sculptures that have been featured on national television, recognized in industry media, and included at movie premieres, celebrity galas, concerts and sporting events.
“The sculpture revealed that night will be a piece of Allegan iconography that will be recognizable to people in the area,” said City of Allegan promotions coordinator Parker Johnson.
The Ice Brigade will also be bringing along “photoentertainment,” an attraction that features a graffiti photo booth allowing guests to virtual spray paint, stamp and stencil photos.
“This has a 10-foot green screen for a background that you can write graffiti on and decorate photos with stickers or emojis,” said Johnson.
Revelers can use the digital background for some wild and crazy photos to be sent out on social media while waiting for the big ball drop.
The ball drop is manufactured by Allegan’s own Rope Courses Inc. At 10-foot, 6-inches and with 30,000 synchronized LED lights, it is Michigan’s largest “ball” for the countdown to midnight as it drops 60-feet from the zipline tower at Riverfront Plaza.
The NYE 2019 Celebration starts at 7 p.m. and will feature ziplining across the Kalamazoo River, the city’s new outdoor fireplace as well as 10 other fire pits, music, hot chocolate and adult beverages, games, glow sticks, food and more.
Allegan Event Z!p is open from 4 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Revelers may want to book tickets early for the zipline before spaces fill up. If purchased in advance, tickets are $15 or else it’s $20 at the gate.
Local brew by Tantrick Brewing Co. will feature a NYE original, “Resolution Ale.”
“It was made specifically to debut at the New Year’s party,” Johnson said. “It has a double brown ale brewed with rum barrel aged coffee beans and infused with cinnamon and brown sugar.”
There will also be Michigan favorites from Bell’s Brewery and St. Julian’s Winery throughout the night. Champagne will be available from 10 p.m. until midnight.
From 7 to 10 p.m. a Deejay will be spinning music for the celebration. From 10 p.m. to midnight the live band “The NoBodies” will be kicking up the noise level. Billing themselves as four guys living life one song at a time and based out of Hopkins, The NoBodies were one of the featured bands for the inaugural “Rollin’ on the River” concert series on the Riverfront Stage in 2018 and made the evening a fun one, according to Johnson.
Allegan District Library will be partnering with the City of Allegan to provide a warm, family-friendly space during the celebration. The library will be open from 7 p.m. to midnight and will offer family-oriented activities, including board games, movies, video games, and a special night opening of the library’s digital lab. The public is invited to watch the ball drop and fireworks inside the library, which features its own fireplace.
There will also be plenty to eat if choosing not to sit down in one of the local restaurants. Food trucks will be provided by Pizza Hut, Brewster’s Smokehouse and Patty Matters (great burgers from Grand Rapids).
Bring the whole family to this family-friendly event and make some fun memories to start 2019.
Other sponsors of this event include Andy’s Ace Hardware, Bart/Rumery Agency, Hathaway Cottage and Gifts, The Sassy Olive and Weichert Realtors.
Virginia Ransbottom can be contacted at vransbottom@allegannews.com or at (269) 673-5534.
.
