Harvest Arts Festival, Mural Unveilings Set In Toms River

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Toms River residents are invited to come celebrate some changes and additions in the downtown area as well as take part in the Harvest Arts Festival scheduled for Oct. 21.

Downtown Toms River, the township's business group for the downtown area, will be holding a ribbon-cutting at the Poseidon Academy, unveiling a mural that's part of the Toms River Schools' NEA Big Read program and showing off a new addition to an existing mural as it celebrates the arts.

The tripleheader program begins at 10 a.m. at 218 Main St., where a new addition to the mosaic fish mural “Barnegat Bronte & Friends” will be revealed. The project, coordinated by lead artist Yvonne Yaar, a Toms River resident and longtime Downtown Toms River volunteer, includes 180 fish created by 72 artists. A wave was added to the design, officials said.

At 10:30 a.m. at 53 Main St., there will be an unveiling of the "Station Eleven" mural being painted at the Shops@53 Main. The mural is being painted by students in the Toms River Regional School District's Arts Academy as part of the NEA Big Read program. "Station Eleven" is the post-apocalyptic novel the program is centered around.

The mural will be located in the foyer/entrance to the Dowtown Shops@53 Main for the fall, then Downtown Toms River will be looking for a permanent home for the mural to be installed. The TR Schools Art Academy will be replacing the mural at the Shops@53 Main every season as an ongoing mural project for the Academy students. Permanent homes for every mural created will be sought, the business development group said.

Then, at 11 a.m., the celebration will move to the Irons Street parking lot, where the Toms River Schools' Poseidon Academy ribbon-cutting will be held.

The building, damaged by floodwaters during Superstorm Sandy, has undergone renovations.

The Harvest Arts Festival on Washington Street begins at 11:30 a.m. and goes until 5 p.m. It includes music, inflatable rides, pumpkin decorating, a beer garden, food and merchandise vendors, and a Downtown Scarecrow Walk. There will be a performance by the Toms River Nautical Star Theater Group, Evolution Martial Arts and more. An event schedule can be found here.

Photo by Downtown Toms River business improvement district