July 4th Festivities: What to Expect
This year’s 4th of July may fall on a Monday…but it’s about to get amped up all the same! You’re invited to celebrate Independence Day with free festivities and fireworks on the Lakefront.
CA is co-hosting this year’s festivities with Howard County Rec & Parks, and Columbia Festival of the Arts is producing the incredible entertainment. We appreciate everyone who’s collaborating with CA for this cherished event!
Before we dive into details, we’d like to give a shout-out to CA’s Open Space team. Thanks to their hard work, we’re able to enjoy a beautifully maintained Downtown Columbia Lakefront to the fullest.
Now, let’s get to the fun stuff…
Let’s celebrate!
Who: You and your family and friends!
Where: Downtown Columbia Lakefront (10275 Wincopin Cir, Columbia, MD 21044)
Free public parking is located at the Mall in Columbia and other surrounding public lots.
Click here to download a map of the Lakefront, parking and more for July 4th!
When: Monday, July 4, 2022
- Blankets may be placed at 3pm
- Food trucks will be available 5-9pm (See list of food trucks below ⬇)
- Music goes from 6-9pm (Details on the performers below ⬇)
- Fireworks start around 9:20pm (dusk)
- Howard County Police will shut down Little Patuxent Parkway from Symphony Woods Road (Old South Entrance Road) to Governor Warfield Parkway between 6-7pm. That section of Little Patuxent Parkway will remain closed until approximately 11pm. The eastbound side of Little Patuxent Parkway will also be closed eastbound between Broken Land Parkway and Symphony Woods Road from approximately 8-11pm. Plan accordingly!
Music + food trucks
CA is excited to present two incredible acts produced by Columbia Festival of the Arts.
- 6-7:15pm – Bobby Thompson Quartet, folk-blues singer-songwriter
- 7:30-9pm – Vanessa Collier, Howard County native and River Hill High School alum who weaves funk, soul, rock, and blues into every performance
Click here to learn more about the performers!
And come hungry because we have all sorts of food trucks serving from 5-9pm, including:
- Althea’s Almost Famous
- Bennett’s Grill
- Blowfish Poke
- Dizzy Cow Pizza
- DMV Taqueria
- For the Soul Food Truck
- Hardy’s BBQ
- Jab’s Ice Cream
- Kona Ice
- Pacha Mama’s Juice
- Tasty Treats
Music + food trucks
CA is excited to present two incredible acts produced by Columbia Festival of the Arts.
- 6-7:15pm – Bobby Thompson Quartet, folk-blues singer-songwriter
- 7:30-9pm – Vanessa Collier, Howard County native and River Hill High School alum who weaves funk, soul, rock, and blues into every performance
Click here to learn more about the performers!
And come hungry because we have all sorts of food trucks serving from 5-9pm, including:
Fireworks
After enjoying the live music, make sure to stick around for the grand finale: a spectacular fireworks show presented by Howard County Recreation & Parks and the Howard County Executive’s Office.
The 20-minute fireworks display will start around 9:20pm (dusk), but residents who wish to place blankets are welcome to do so after 3pm.
Free bike corral
As always, CA encourages everyone to ride down to the Lakefront! Bike HoCo is running a free bike corral (think a coat check-style parking set up for your bicycles) for July 4th events. A team of volunteers will watch the bikes while you and your family enjoy the food and music and watch the fireworks.
The bike corral opens at 3pm in the lower parking lot of Whole Foods. There’s room for more than 50 bikes, so ride early!
Click here to download a map of the Lakefront and surrounding areas for July 4th!
Click here for biking directions from each of Columbia’s villages and a couple of surrounding locations. Pro tip: CA’s pathways are fully lit from the villages of Oakland Mills and Wilde Lake to the Lakefront.
Bike HoCo is also looking for volunteers for the corral. Contact Warren Wortman at bikehococorral@gmail.com for more information.
More July 4th fun
In the morning, Luminus will host a Race4TheWorld 5K starting at Merriweather Post Pavilion which honors the journey of immigrants and refugees from around the world. Luminus is a local non-profit that offers legal, social and language services to new Americans. Click here to sign up for the Race4TheWorld 5K.
Before festivities at the Lakefront, Inner Arbor Trust is hosting a free festival in Symphony Woods. We love seeing CA spaces activated for this community-wide celebration! Click here for more information.
