Things to Do in Billings This Weekend: July 11

The first weekend after the July 4 holiday delivers nearly two dozen community events across Billings, from a street-food market on North 27th Street to a dusk concert series at Pioneer Park. The action kicks off Saturday at 10 a.m. with the monthly Billings Art Walk, which this month stretches from the Yellowstone Art Museum at 212 N. 29th St. south to the Billings Studio Theatre on Grant Street.

It’s a weekend that offers a breather from the global headlines that have dominated the last 48 hours, a second typhoon in China, the Strait of Hormuz closure, a deadly wildfire in Spain, and a Justice Department subpoena of New York Times reporters. Here in Billings, the pace is slower but the energy is real. More than 30 vendors from the Yellowstone County Farmers Market are expected along 5th Avenue North, selling everything from local honey to fresh sweet corn, with the market open both Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Three events you shouldn’t miss

On Saturday afternoon, the Billings Public Library at 510 N. 29th St. hosts its third annual Community Mural Workshop. From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., local artist Jasmine Stroud leads participants in painting a 10-foot-by-8-foot canvas that will later be installed inside the downtown SkyLink tunnel between the Library and the Lincoln Center. Supplies are free; the library is asking for donations ($5 suggested) to cover materials.

Sunday morning brings the Billings Temple, a 65-acre site operated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 1625 Poly Drive, opening its grounds for a community garden tour from 9 a.m. to noon. The tour features 12 demonstration plots, including a pollinator garden and a heritage vegetable patch. Admission is free. About 200 people attended last year’s tour; volunteers are expecting a similar number this year.

For the evening crowd, the Billings Symphony Orchestra & Chorale offers a free concert at the Skyview High School amphitheater at 7 p.m. Sunday. The program includes selections from Dvořák’s New World Symphony and a set of folk songs from the Rocky Mountain region. Tickets are not required; the symphony says it expects around 1,000 attendees, based on advance RSVPs via its website.

What it costs and where to park

The art walk is free. The farmers market is free to enter. The concert is free. Parking downtown can be a headache, but the city’s ParkBillings app shows the lot at 2nd Avenue North and 28th Street has 32 open spaces as of Saturday morning, at $1.25 per hour. The library’s parking ramp on 29th Street costs $1.50 per hour and usually fills by 11 a.m. on a market Saturday.

Sunday’s temple tour is also free, with overflow parking available at the Riverfront Park lot at 3000 Poly Drive, a five-minute walk from the temple gates.

If you’re looking for a sit-down meal nearby, the McCormick Café on 29th Street is serving a brunch special from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, two eggs, hash browns, and choice of bacon or sausage for $12.95. Reservations aren’t accepted, but the wait typically runs 10 to 15 minutes before noon.

The coming week also sees the start of the Billings Chamber of Commerce’s Summer Youth Job Fair, set for Wednesday, July 15, at the Montana Pavilion at MetraPark. More than 40 employers will be there, from St. Vincent Healthcare to the city’s Parks and Recreation Department. The fair runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; entry is free for all high school students carrying a valid school ID.

For those who prefer to stay in, the Billings Gazette’s online events calendar lists 48 local events through the end of July, including a Lego club at the Billings Public Library and a twilight yoga session at the Yellowstone Botanical Garden. The garden’s twilight yoga, on July 18, costs $15 per person and includes a guided session among the rose arbor and a glass of iced tea afterward.

Across town, the Billings Food Bank at 1824 1st Ave. N. is running its annual summer food drive through July 31, with a goal of collecting 10,000 pounds of nonperishable items. As of Friday, the bank had collected 3,700 pounds, ahead of last year’s pace by about 400 pounds, according to a posted notice in its lobby.

If global news has you feeling stuck, the weekend’s slate of small, local gatherings might be the antidote. The art walk winds down at 3 p.m. Saturday. The market closes at 1 p.m. Sunday. Plan accordingly.