Jacksonville’s annual Cruise Nite has undergone some recent changes. This year’s Cruise Nite was held in the downtown square rather than on Morton Avenue.
The organizers of the 28th annual event thought that is was time for some much needed changes. In recent Cruise Nites, it seemed as though more and more people lost interest in the point of the event. They seemed to think of it more as a social event rather than a car show.
Due to this, the members of the Jacksonville Cruise Nite Association decided to hold the event in the downtown square. That way more people who were actually interested in the cars would be there and not a bunch of people only interested in socializing.
The event went very well with the addition of this new change. It seemed to run smoother, and there was still a great turnout. More than 200 cars participated.
The cruise started at 4:30 p.m. and began at the east entrance of Community Park running through South Jacksonville’s Nichols Park and also running through Jacksonville before finally ending at the downtown square.
The new route worked very well for the amount of traffic they had. The stoplights and stop signs were not overly crowded and local police were on duty during the entire night to direct traffic.
Three bands provided entertainment for the night in Central Park from 5-10 p.m. There was also a good selection of restaurants to eat at downtown, allowing spectators and participants to just walk a short distance to grab a bite to eat.
JHS student, Karli Knox, said, “It wasn’t as fun as it had been when it was on Morton, but it was really cool to get to see inside the cars when they were parked in the square, and they had really good bands playing too.”
Sponsors and donors have allowed the Jacksonville Cruise Nite Association to keep this night expense free for the participants and spectators. The Association only asked for donations of non-perishable food items or monetary gifts to give to the Jacksonville Food Bank.
There was also the annual Cruise Nite car show the next day at 8 a.m. on Sunday, September 22, in Community Park.
From now on, the Jacksonville Cruise Nite Association plans to keep the annual event in the downtown square. The change worked very well, and it was also more enjoyable.
So don’t fret Jacksonville civilians; our very popular and annual event will still go on for many years to come!