Community leaders have announced events happening in the downtown area of Minneapolis this summer.

Members of the Minneapolis downtown council, the Superintendent for the city’s Park and Recreation Board, and leaders of the Minnesota Orchestra, Minnesota Lynx and Target, attended a news conference with Mayor Jacob Frey announcing the events. You can watch the full news conference in the video player at the bottom of this article.

More than 1,800 events will be held in the downtown area this summer, according to Leah Wong, the vice president of external relations for the Minneapolis Downtown Council and the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District.

Among those events are the following:

• More than a dozen concerts
• Dozens of professional sporting events
• 280 performances at theaters
• Pianos on Parade
• Stone Arch Festival
• Minneapolis Aquatennial
• Street Art Festival
• Loring Park Art Festival

Nicollet will feature the Nicollet Exchange on Tuesdays, and exchange goods. Downtown Thursdays will also take place on Nicollet that will include games, giveaways and food trucks. A mini-golf course will also be available on some select days.

New this year, Downtown Field Day will be held on June 1, and will include an opening ceremony, a happy hour, live music and competitions.

There will also be a new bocci league and a new pickleball court.

Earlier this month, Taste of Minnesota announced it will be held in the downtown Minneapolis area after it was discontinued in 2016.

Carley Knox, the president of Business Operations for the Minnesota Lynx will have a STEM night next week, and the All-25 team will be returning this summer to be honored. Sylvia Fowles’ jersey will also be retired in June.

In addition, Michelle Miller Burns, the president and CEO of the Minnesota Orchestra, announced Summer at Orchestra Hall will include a presentation of the International Day of Music on Saturday, July 15. There will also be three performances with Dessa at the beginning of August.

CLICK HERE for a calendar of events happening in the downtown area.

Steve Cramer, the current President and CEO of the Minneapolis downtown Council and Minneapolis Downtown Improvement district, was not listed as an event attendee, however, he spoke at the start of the news conference. In April, it was announced that Cramer will be retiring in December.

During Cramer’s tenure, the organization and roughly 450 members and stakeholders focused on downtown’s ability to attract new businesses, employees and residents. There are 56,748 residents within downtown’s five neighborhoods, and more than 8.5 million people attended events downtown last year.

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Despite information from studies done by the council, the city has seen consolidations and businesses move out of the downtown area.

In March, the foreclosed Hilton Hotel was auctioned to an attorney representing Wells Fargo Bank. In addition, AT&T announced in early April that it is moving out of its downtown office. As previously reported, the company will be relocating to a Bloomington building by the end of August.

However, as previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS last month, Wells Fargo decided to consolidate its corporate offices in the Twin Cities – it will be leaving the south Minneapolis campus and St. Louis Park office and move to one of three locations – two of which are in downtown Minneapolis.

Also this month, Northstar East – a former vacant office building – was bought by Sherman Associates for $9 million in order to make new apartments.

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