Don’t be vexed by street closings for free rock concert downtown

Festival organizers expect to attract 8,000 people for the show Sunday.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — Sunday will be a busy day downtown, and motorists need to be aware of some changes in traffic patterns.

One block of West Federal Street will be closed to traffic beginning at 3 a.m. Sunday for the Vexfest rock festival.

The street will be blocked off between Phelps Street and Wick Avenue. Traffic will be routed around the block.

One block of North Phelps Street, between West Commerce and West Federal streets, also will be closed during that time. It will be used as a staging area for the festival, said Fred Rafidi, Vexfest organizer.

Vexfest begins at noon and will run until 2 a.m. Monday. The free festival will feature 42 bands playing on two outdoor stages set up on either end of the block. Food and other vendors will also set up shop in the festival area.

Performances also will take place inside two bars on the block: Barley’s and Downtown 36.

Last year’s festival attracted about 8,000 people over the course of the event. Organizers are expecting a similar number this year.

Both streets will be reopened in time for Monday morning traffic.

Rosetta Stone restaurant at 110 W. Federal St. will have its weekly Bike Day for motorcyclists from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday, but will not block off the street as it usually does. Instead, bikers can park in front of the restaurant or in the parking lot behind the restaurant.

All activities will be moved inside the restaurant, said Michael Blake, Rosetta Stone manager. The entrance to the parking lot is off West Commerce Street.

The weekly Bike Day attracts hundreds of bikers.