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From the City’s website:

Big Bang Weekend Features Something for Everyone in Gaithersburg
Posted 6/6/2008

Staying in town this Fourth of July?  Join in some local fun as the City of Gaithersburg and 97.1 WASH-FM present a Big Bang Weekend Celebration Thursday, July 3 through Monday, July 7.  All concerts are free. 

The weekend kicks off with a children’s concert featuring the ever-popular Mr. Ray on Thursday, July 3 at 10:30 a.m. at the City Hall Concert Pavilion, 31 South Summit Avenue in Olde Towne Gaithersburg. Mr. Ray brings a unique, brand of cool, hip, positive entertainment for the entire family to enjoy.  This concert is also sponsored in part by www.tots2tweens.com.

The festivities continue on Friday with Gaithersburg’s Fourth of July Fireworks and Concert at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds, 16 Chestnut Street. Gates open at 5 p.m. Walk in at Chestnut or Dalamar Streets; Perry Parkway itself and the Perry Parkway entrance will be closed. No cars will be allowed in the Fairgrounds. WASH FM starts the night off at 6 p.m. with fun and games for the whole family, followed by a concert featuring Powerhouse at 7 p.m. A special City ceremony will take place at 8 p.m., with more concert to follow.  The City’s spectacular fireworks display begins at dusk. A variety of food will be sold at this event. Absolutely NO alcoholic beverages, glass containers, rollerblades, skates, bikes, pets, or fireworks of any kind will be permitted.  The rain date for the fireworks is Saturday, July 5.

Get whisked away to little latitudes on Saturday, July 5 when B2B, a Jimmy Buffett tribute band, performs at the City Hall Concert Pavilion at 7 p.m.  You’ll feel like you’re on a tropical island as the band plays Jimmy Buffett favorites that will sweep you away to paradise.  Note that if the July 4 fireworks are postponed until July 5, this concert will take place at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds.

The exciting spirit known as “Beatlemania” is alive again in The Return, the world’s most authentic Beatles tribute band.  Enjoy this amazingly energetic concert on Sunday, July 6 at 5 p.m. at the City Hall Concert Pavilion.  Note that this concert was originally scheduled for May 31 but was cancelled due to inclement weather that day. 

One more exciting concert rounds out Big Bang Weekend.  Girl Authority, a group of real girls with different personalities and interests, come together to sing, dance and put their own spin on girl power hits when they perform on Monday, July 7 at 10:30 a.m. at the City Hall Concert Pavilion.  This concert is sponsored in part by www.tots2tweens.com.

Click on the links below for more information or call 301-258-6350 or email parksrec@gaithersburgmd.gov.

• Big Band Weekend Events
  

• On Stage Summer Concert Series

From the City’s website.

The City of Gaithersburg’s Winter Lights Festival returns for a twelfth season of magical delight, with a sneak preview on Friday and Saturday, November 23 and 24. During the two-day sneak preview the festival will be open from 6 to 10 p.m. Admission is $12 per car. The festival will then be open for the holiday season nightly from November 30 through December 30.

Driving through the enchanted forest setting of Seneca Creek State Park, visitors will enjoy more than 380 illuminated displays and 60 animated vignettes that light up the night. Themed areas along the 3.5 mile drive include Winter Woods, Teddy Bear Land, Victorian Village, the North Pole and much more.

Thousands of people in the D.C. area have made this an annual holiday tradition. Return visitors will be thrilled to find new displays and arrangements that keep the festival fresh and new. Several contests will take place during this year’s event, including a drawing contest for children, a trivia contest for all ages, and a chance to win a $1,000 shopping spree at Lakeforest Shopping Center. Complete contest details will be available in the official Winter Lights Festival program book distributed to all visitors.

Winter Lights is open Sunday through Thursday from 6 to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 6 to 10 p.m. The Festival is closed on December 25. Cash-only admission is $10 per car Sunday through Thursday and $12 per car Friday and Saturday. Two dollar discount coupons valid Monday through Thursday only are available at nearby Lakeforest Shopping Center.

Back by popular demand this year are open trolley rides through the festival, a great way to see the lights from a whole new perspective. Rides are available on Monday, December 3 and December 10 at 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. The cash-only fee is $5 per person. Seating is limited, and is available on a first come, first served basis.

In the spirit of the holidays, proceeds from the 2007 festival will benefit local charities, including Gaithersburg Help, the Friends of Seneca Creek State Park, Friends of Wells/Robertson House, Inc., Gaithersburg Community Volunteer Soup Kitchen, and the Shady Grove Adventist Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

This year’s festival is sponsored in part by Comcast, The Gazette, Lakeforest, MIX 107.3 FM, OBA Bank, Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, The Beacon Newspaper, Giant Food, Hughes Network System, Insight Magazine, MedImmune, Sandy Spring Bank, and Washington Parent.

Seneca Creek State Park is located at 11950 Clopper Road, a few miles west of the intersection with I-270. For more information and group admission rates please call 301-258-6350 or visit the City’s Winter Lights webpage.

This is, to my knowlege, the largest City-sponsored annual event of the year; last year’s attendance was estimated at 30,000 people. Text from the City’s press release, the pictures are from my post on last year’s event:

“Celebrate Gaithersburg in Olde Towne,” Gaithersburg’s popular street festival, is back for its 26th year. A several block area around the intersection of Summit and Diamond Avenues will be closed to traffic as the entire community comes out for a day of music, food, arts, crafts, amusements, and much more. It all happens on Sunday, September 16 from Noon to 5 p.m.

Local restaurants will be on hand to offer delectable samples from their menus in this year’s “Taste” of Gaithersburg. Enjoy a wide range of culinary delights ranging from Southern fried chicken to African stews. Special tickets, priced at $1.25 each, must be purchased to buy “Taste” items. No item will sell for more than three tickets. Other favorites, including funnel cakes and ice cream, will be available throughout the festival. “Taste” tickets are not valid at these vendors. Advance “Taste” tickets sales are going on now at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park. Visit the festival website at www.gaithersburgmd.gov/celebrate for details.

Five stages of live entertainment showcase a wide range of musical styles, headlined by Sister Hazel. Pat McGee and Friends kick off the entertainment on Stage I, the City Hall Concert Pavilion, at 1 p.m., followed by platinum and gold album recording artists Sister Hazel, taking the stage at 2:45 p.m.

On Stage II in Olde Towne Park near the train station, enjoy the classic sounds of the Olney Big Band from Noon until 2 p.m. Then kick up your heels to the Americana, roots rock sounds of Ruthie & the Wranglers from 3 to 5 p.m. Stage II is sponsored by Sandy Spring Bank.

Stage III at Diamond and Park Avenues will feature the Latin rhythms of Sol y Rumba, Sin Fronteras and Mystic Warriors throughout the day. A variety of community performances, including dance and choral music, can be found on Stage IV on East Diamond Avenue. Stage IV is sponsored by Sport & Health.

Artisans, importers and entertainers from around the globe will share their wares and talents in the City World Market, located in the parking lot adjacent to City Hall. A unique element of the World Market is an education initiative, supported by Gaithersburg’s Economic Development office. Qualifying artisans received free business development training over the summer, including information on registering a business, where and how to obtain loans, product pricing, marketing, and more. Sponsored in part by the Celebrate Gaithersburg in Olde Towne Montgomery College Hispanic Business & Training Institute and the Mid-Atlantic Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the award-winning City World Market is also home to Stage V, featuring African dance, Argentine Tango, Middle Eastern belly dance, and much more.

Youngsters are in for a special treat with interactive theatre, games, demonstrations and amusements. Little ones will enjoy wandering through Bubble Island, or trying their skills on the Forest Oak Boy Scouts rope bridge. Creativity comes alive at the Middle Earth Studios, with costumed story telling and creative dramatics. Explore the natural world in the Discovery Creek Rolling Rainforest. Have your picture taken with Smokey the Bear at the Firehouse Museum, be in your own safety video with KinderVision, and visit Operation Lifesaver at the Community Museum to learn about safe railroad crossing.

Two children’s activity areas will feature circus clowns, balloon artists, jugglers and interactive entertainment. Located in the parking lot adjacent to Wells/Robertson House near City Hall and on Summit Avenue near Bank of America, the activity areas are sponsored in part by Six Flags America and Washington Parent Magazine. There will be other amusements such as moon bounces, a climbing wall and slides throughout the festival.

The City of Gaithersburg will recognize its newest citizens during a naturalization ceremony conducted at noon at the City Hall Concert Pavilion. Immediately following the swearing in, the Mayor and City Council will present awards for the Distinguished Citizen, Outstanding Organization, and Friend of Gaithersburg.

Free shuttle service is available to and from satellite parking at Lakeforest Shopping Center. A bike valet parking service will be available behind the Victor Litz Music Center off of Summit Avenue. Free parking is also available at the public garage on the corner of South Summit and Olde Towne Avenues. Additional parking is available at the Activity Center at Bohrer Park, less than a quarter mile from the festival area. Please note that no alcohol, skateboards, rollerblades, bicycles, or pets are allowed at the event.

Celebrate Gaithersburg in Olde Towne is sponsored in part by MIX 107.3 FM, Washington’s CW Television and Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic Area. For a complete festival schedule visit the City’s website at www.gaithersburgmd.gov/celebrate or call 301-258-6350.

In case anyone is interested, or just gets to wondering why, in a couple of weeks, there’ll be an extraordinary number of policemen and horses in Gaithersburg, the 2007 North American Police Equestrian Championships will be held Saturday and Sunday, September 22 and 23, at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. I see no indication on their website one way or another as to whether the event is open to the public, although I don’t know why it wouldn’t be. I’ll write to the organizers to try to find out for sure.

Update: I received a response from the competition organizers, and the good news is that admission is free to the public:

Yes It is FREE to the public. I need to put that on the website.

There are 2 days of competition. Sat is Equitation and Sunday is the Obstacle Course which is the most exciting and interesting of the two days.

Thanks for posting!

It appears that if you (or your kids) love horses, this could be a great way to spend a few hours on that weekend.