PVDFest returns to Kennedy Plaza

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — PVDFest is returning to Kennedy Plaza for its 10th year.

“PVDFest is the signature event of, by, and for the great people of Providence,” Culture and Tourism Director Joe Wilson, Jr. said.

The festival was moved to the Providence Innovation District Park by the pedestrian bridge in 2023, but Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said feedback was clear.

“Community feedback was pretty consistent, that they preferred to have a festival that is downtown,” he said. “We heard that loud and clear, which is why we’re returning to our roots, and the festival footprint will be what people had known the festival to have evolved into.”

PVDFest 2024 will have much of the same entertainment as previous years, including food, art and music.

“Everybody feels welcome [there],” Community Participation Program Manager Jan Carlos Terrero said. “It’s a transportation hub that everybody uses, so it only makes sense.”

Organizers said that the location should be more accessible for everyone, including those with mobility issues.

“It’s flatter, it’s more convenient,” R.A.M.P. CEO Tina Guenette said. “Everything is close by, there’s more things you can get to down here, and it’s easier to make a problem go away when you have a small contained area.”

Mayor Smiley said he feels that taking the public’s feedback into account should create a more enjoyable experience for all.

“The footprint is returning downtown, as a result of the feedback we heard from the community,” Smiley said. “We hope that people are excited to celebrate and listen to great music and see great art being made, and to shop and dine and stroll on Washington street, Westminster street and here in the plaza.”

Smiley added that, like last year, patrons cannot openly carry alcohol at the festival, adding there will be block-party sectors where alcohol is allowed.

Officials said the festival is on Sept. 6 and 7, with a rain date of Sept. 8.