VENICE — The city’s centennial celebration team held the first of two planned community meetings about the celebration of the city’s birthday Thursday evening.
Like so many other city meetings, this one had been delayed because of hurricanes Helene and Milton, Assistant City Manager James Clinch said via the Zoom platform.
Talking about the centennial was a nice change of pace from dealing with hurricane issues, he said.
The preparations for the centennial celebration will begin ramping up after the first of the year, leading to the official kickoff — the Nov. 29 holiday parade.
The event coincides with the state Legislature’s passage of a law in November 1925 creating the town of Venice, Historical Resources Manager Harry Klinkhamer said.
The final event of the months-long celebration will be in May — serving a centennial cake. May 1927 is the month Venice became a city.
Other planned “keystone” events include a dinner for former mayors and Venice Area Chamber of Commerce presidents and chairs in February 2026 (the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, which was developing Venice, declared it “open” in February 1926); a parade and picnic in July 2026 (the town of Venice came into existence July 1, 1926); and a futurist roundtable in March 2027, Special Events & Marketing Coordinator Brianne Lorenz said.