The Weekend
Major Saturday events
Sat - Paint the Cloud Green · Historic Downtown · 5–11pm
St. Cloud's annual St. Patrick's Day night is back. Murphy's Law plays live Irish music, Food Truck Wars is out in full force, there's a Kids Fun Run at 6pm ($10/person, medals for the first 100 finishers), a 5K Glow Run through downtown, and the St. Baldrick's ShaveFest raising money for childhood cancer research. One of the best nights downtown puts on all year.
Register for the runs → here.
Sat · Doc Dixon Comedy & Magic · VFW Performance Hall · 5 PM
Comedy and magic show from a touring magician known for fooling Penn & Teller, with optional dinner‑and‑show tickets.
Get your Tickets → here
Sun · Lakefront Sunday · St. Cloud Lakefront Park · Anytime
The new shade structure at the Bandshell is worth a look. Artificial turf, a solid breeze off East Lake Toho, and the splash pad is running again. Free, easy Sunday.
Weekly roundup
What’s changing around St. Cloud
The city is looking at expanding Entertainment District hours downtown. An ordinance to extend outdoor alcohol consumption days and hours got its first reading at City Council. It heads to public comment before a final vote. Good news for restaurants and live music spots trying to make the district work.
St. Cloud named Jabarie Walker, a former New Orleans deputy chief of staff and housing leader, as its new Assistant City Manager.
A new K–8 school is approved inside a large subdivision off Hickory Tree Road, part of more than 1,000 new homes planned in that area.
The burn ban in Osceola County has been lifted. Recent rainfall gave the all-clear. If you've been waiting to clear brush or run a controlled burn on your property, the window is open. Check with St. Cloud Fire Rescue on local guidelines before you light anything.
Two new fire stations are actively under construction. Refurbishments at the Fire Administration Building are underway, stations 32 and 35 are being built out, and the department is hiring for SAFER grant-funded positions. Growing city, growing department.
Local Spotlight
Meet The Black Squirrel Bookstore
If you haven't made it to The Black Squirrel on New York Ave, it's worth the trip. Independent bookstore, good selection, and staff who will actually ask what you like before making a recommendation. One of the better reasons to walk downtown on a Saturday morning.
This speakeasy has instantly become a favorite. My husband and I went for their Valentine’s Day event and we couldn’t have been happier.
Got a St. Cloud business we should spotlight?
Tell us about it. → here.
Did You Know
Why St. Cloud is called “Soldier City”
When Civil War veterans settled St. Cloud in 1909, a half-acre downtown lot cost $50 and came with five acres of farmland outside the city. The deal spread nationwide through the Grand Army of the Republic and St. Cloud became home to one of the largest concentrations of Union veterans in the South, second only to Chicago. That's where "Soldier City" comes from.
Local Spotlight
[your business here]
We're looking for a few St. Cloud businesses to come on as founding partners. Want your business in front of St. Cloud homeowners every Thursday? Apply here today to get your business in front of locals!
👀 ICYMI (in case you missed it)
Last week we launched Cloud Local
St. Cloud's free Thursday newsletter. If someone forwarded you this issue, welcome. Subscribe free at thecloudlocal.com
Get involved
Help at city events & share a local hero
Want to help at city events or parks? St. Cloud has an ongoing volunteer program with opportunities across departments - one simple online form gets you started.
Know a person or business doing something good in St. Cloud? Hit reply with “SPOTLIGHT” and a sentence about them; we pull future features straight from reader suggestions.
That’s it for this week.
Keep showing up for St. Cloud, keep cheering on local people and businesses, and enjoy your weekend.
Your Cloud Local Team
P.S.
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