For three decades, Old St. Patrick’s Catholic Church has hosted one of downtown Chicago’s most anticipated summer blowouts in the shadow of its steeple.
But this week, the West Loop parish announced that the two-night extravaganza billed as “the world’s largest block party” will be moving to a new block. The parish will put on the party for only one night, June 27, at the UIC Festival Lot a mile away.
Organizers were forced to move the festival this year after the church’s neighbor sold the empty lot that has served as the party’s venue in recent years.
“We are very fortunate in that it’s three to four times the current landscape of the event,” said Sheila Greifhahn, Old St. Patrick’s director of special events. She predicts the larger footprint, in addition to the Saturday-only schedule, will increase turnout. In recent years, up to 20,000 people have attended over two nights, she said.
Drawing headliners like the Counting Crows, Guster, Third Eye Blind, and Bare Naked Ladies, the church has garnered a reputation for inviting popular rock bands that draw enthusiastic fans.
The event also has earned fame as one of the hottest destinations for singles. More than a few couples have been married at Old St. Patrick’s after meeting at the festival, said the Rev. Tom Hurley, its pastor.
The Rev. Jack Wall, its former pastor, said the block party began in the 1980s as a ministry to show young adults the virtue of hospitality.
“The idea was to invite the city of Chicago to experience a great Chicago block party, one that’s in the heart of the city,” said Wall, who now serves as the head of Catholic Extension Society. “It’s become kind of a secular sacrament.”
Back then, the party shut down Desplaines and Adams streets when they were still sleepy roadways in one of the dullest parts of downtown. But as Adams became a thoroughfare and attendance grew, the crowds moved to the lot next door. The sale and development of that lot, slated to begin in the next few months, further demonstrates how much the neighborhood has changed, Greifhahn said.
Foot traffic also has changed. Because more companies offer shortened summer hours or opportunities to work remotely, fewer people are around Friday evenings to stroll over to the festival, taking a bite out of attendance, she said. The Saturday-only schedule will resolve that.
But just because the festival is leaving the shadow of the steeple doesn’t mean it’s any less of a ministry, said Hurley. The Saturday event still will kick off with an outdoor Mass, and proceeds will finance the parish’s Social Outreach Center, which houses a career transition center, a scholarship and mentoring program for young people, music therapy for homeless women in recovery, and a number of global outreach ministries serving people in East Africa, Nicaragua, India and Peru.
A spokeswoman did not release how much the festival makes annually but said its annual goal is $100,000. Advance tickets in the past have sold for $40. VIP tickets were sold for $85.
“We have to do outreach to those in their young adult years,” Hurley said. “A lot of young adults are coming here and still do. What brings young people together but rock music? It wasn’t a sophisticated type of formula, but it seemed to work and continues to work. There are lot of different doorways into the church experience.”
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