The fourth annual Southland Street Fair is scheduled to take place on May 12. Organized by the Southland Association, a nonprofit community service organization featuring representatives from both the Southland area business and residential community, this free annual event celebrates the Southland area and builds awareness of all that the district has to offer. The event will feature live music, kids’ activities and more than 100 vendors, from food and beer to arts, crafts, retail and information booths. Southland Drive will be closed to vehicular traffic between Southport and Southview drives from 12:30-10 p.m., and the event will take place on the street, as well as in surrounding parking lots, from 3-8 p.m. More information can be found atwww.southlandstreetfair.com.
The second annual Taste of Beaumont will take place on June 1, this year at the MoonDance at Midnight Pass Amphitheatre in Beaumont Centre. This family-friendly event hosted by Moondance Foundation, the City of Lexington’s 10th District Council Office and Lexington Parks & Recreation will include local food and retail vendors, craft beer and cocktails, live music, biking demonstrations, kids’ activities and more. More details can be found at www.lexingtonky.gov/taste-beaumont.
Recognizing distinctive and outstanding gardens and plantings in Fayette County, the Lexington Council Garden Clubs Lexington in Bloom contest is accepting submissions through June 1. The biennial contest has many objectives: to instill a spirit of community, to increase civic pride and to improve the visual appeal of Lexington through the imaginative use of flowers, plants and trees.
Entries must be visible from the street, and winners will be selected in six categories:
• Residence, front yard – amateur gardener
• Residence, front yard – professionally landscaped
• Business, large garden or planting
• Business, small garden or planting
• Municipal plantings
• Miscellaneous, broken down into the following categories: a) community gardens; b) small displays (container gardens, window boxes, etc.); c) neighborhood entrances; d) schools, churches, non-profits, etc.; e) butterfly/rain gardens/native plantings; and f) vegetable gardens.
Entries will be judged by panels of landscape designers, master gardeners, first-place winners from the 2016 contest, and experienced gardeners from the Lexington Council Garden Clubs. Judges take into consideration first impression, use of color and texture, maintenance, plant selection, sustainability of design to location and function and creativity, and winners are not necessarily selected in every category.
Entry forms are available at www.lexgardenclubs.org/lexington-in-bloom-contest. A reception for winners will take place at the Lexington Public Library Eastside branch on June 24. For more information, please contact Liz Pattengill at (859) 223-4362, e-mail lexingtoninbloom@gmail.com or visit the Lexington Council Gardens Club website.