First Friday, a grassroots project that shone a light on downtown businesses, featured local artists, musicians and vendors, and did a good job attracting crowds downtown, was undone by the pandemic.
Now it’s back. The second revived First Friday is scheduled for Aug. 5. If the one last month is any indication, the turnout will be impressive.
Michael Limas, part owner of Las Ramblas at Market Square and Las Ramblas Hospitality Group, remembers the original round of First Fridays before the pandemic, including the inaugural one, which took place in 2019 soon after his cocktail lounge opened its doors.
“It was slow and then it started to pick up and it was awesome,” he said. “So much activity, people walking around. You could tell that they were re-experiencing their own community in such a positive light. … We saw major success. As businesses owners, we couldn’t wait for First Friday.”
Gonzalo Gomez and Luis Foncerrada constituted the driving force behind the original event and essentially drew the map for the newest iteration. Today a large group of downtown business owners have banded together to bring back First Friday, though Limas gives particular credit to Danny Alvarez and Rodrigo Quintero, owners of Kraken Lounge and Double Trouble Sports & Cocktails, respectively, both located on East Adams Street.
Talk of relaunching First Friday began last year, though it wasn’t clear at first who would take the lead in “relighting the fuse,” Limas said.
“It’s a big contingent, though Danny and Rod are really pushing it,” he said. “They’re putting their all in it, so major kudos.”
Quintero credited others with doing the heavy lifting, adding that “all the business owners downtown have been trying to get this going for a while.”
“We finally got it together,” he said. “Most of us meet once a month and we get our ideas together.”
The current First Fridays follow the original recipe, with temporary art installations and live music in bars and restaurants; vendors, musicians and artists set up in Market Square, plus games and other attractions for the youngest members of the family. The idea is to give people something to do downtown that doesn’t necessarily cost money, though spending money is certainly allowed.
Quintero noted that today there are even more restaurants, bars and shops open downtown than before the pandemic, and said the event is attracting interest from artists, musicians and vendors from around the Rio Grande Valley and not just Brownsville. Market Square was packed for the July 1 First Friday, which organizers threw together in just two weeks, he said, describing it as a “pretty great night.”
The city of Brownsville has been helpful and supportive in terms of marketing the event, with Downtown Manager Allen Garces acting as the liaison between downtown business owners as the city, Quintero said, adding that he anticipates great things from First Friday and expects it will only get bigger and better.
Limas said there’s plenty going on almost any day of the week downtown, though First Friday serves as a real showcase.
“Really the intention is to give people a reason to come downtown that haven’t, so they can really experience the special things that are happening,” he said. “For us that’s great. That’s exactly what we want, is exposure.
“The other benefit is you have folks coming in from Harlingen. You have folks coming in from Hidalgo County. From a tax-dollar perspective, that’s exactly what we want for the city. It helps generate sales tax revenue, gives us exposure and it helps local businesses, which are predominately what’s down here, to increase their bottom line that day. We love it. We’re certainly grateful.”
More information is available at the BTX Downtown First Friday Facebook page.
