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Downtown fun: Better Block event draws big crowds in Quincy

CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 8 months AGO
by CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | July 23, 2021 1:03 AM

QUINCY — The Quincy Better Block event July 16 and 17 drew about 1,000 people each day, according to Quincy Valley Chamber of Commerce officials.

The event featured food and music on Friday night, and the Quincy Farmers Market on Saturday. One block of B Street was closed to motorists and furnished with outdoor seating for diners and music.

Operators at the Microsoft Quincy MWH Data Center provided money to hire the Dallas, Texas-based Better Block Foundation to put on the first event.

“It was awesome. Better than we expected,” said Catalina Blancas, QVCC executive assistant.

Chamber officials want to sponsor similar events in the future, she said.

Chelsea Putnam, vendor manager for the Farmers Market, said the market attracted 32 vendors July 17. The Quincy Farmers Market has been averaging about 20 vendors each Saturday, she said.

“Everybody had a pretty successful day,” Putnam said. “Saturday was one of the most trafficked markets we’ve ever had.”

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