Block Party

Trades District Block Party

Friday, November 7, 2025 • 5 - 8 p.m.
N Madison St & Maker Way • Bloomington, IN

Celebrate innovation, entrepreneurship, art, and community in the heart of Bloomington’s Trades District. Stop by on your way through Gallery Walk!

The Block Party takes place on Friday of Innovation Week. Check out everything going on at the Mill and get your free Innovation Week ticket!

FREE TO ATTEND!

RSVP NOW!

 

What to Expect

Music and Dance

Arts

Tech

Food and Drink

Interactive Projects

Community

Parking and Shuttle

Shuttle Schedule

Take advantage of the IU bus shuttle running between campus and the Trades District all evening!

Beginning at the IMU shelter (7th & Woodlawn), the bus will carry passengers to the 11th & Madison stop at the north entrance to the Trades District and back to the IMU. 

4:45pm - First shuttle begins continous service between IMU (7th & Woodlawn) and Trades District (11th & Madison).

8:10pm - Final shuttle departs from the Trades District. 

 

Music and Dance

Main Stage Schedule

5:15 | Opal

6:00 | The Sera-Tones

6:45 | Fantastic Shams

7:30 | Welcome to the Neighborhood

Featured Performers

DJ Good Peoples

5:45 | Fairview Elementary Violin Program @ Mill Event Hall

6:30 | Windfall Dance Company
@ OT 987 sculpture

 

Food and Drink

Food Trucks

  • Doner Kebab
  • Slop Shop
  • Jay's Kitchen
  • Pinoy Garden Cafe
  • Little Bowl Thai
  • Flam'n Grill
  • Pili's Party Taco
  • Planted Bloomington

Drink Vendors

  • Upland Brewery
  • Oliver Winery
  • Cardinal Spirits
  • Cup of Joy

Arts

  • Artist Market featuring handmade ceramics, jewelry, paper, crochet and macrame pieces, clothing, accessories, paintings, prints, live portrait drawings, mixed-media art, buttons, stickers, keychains, yarn kits, and patches.
  • Comprehensive Design Exhibition featuring student designs for gateways, pavilions, and campus connections. 
  • 6:45 | Artist Talks with faculty artists currently working on pieces designed for future installation in the Trades District. 

 

Tech

  • RoboBoosters robotics demonstrations.
  • Aerospace Systems Lab lighter-than-air vehicles, low profile surface water vehicles, fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles, and cubesat displays.
  • Luddy Makerspace digital fabrication tools.
  • Game Design student-made video game demonstrations.
  • Vibe coding demo with the founder of V Codinator.
  • BinaryHeart student-run used computer and device donation drive.

Interactive Projects

  • Uplands Maker Mobile crafting miniature versions of the OT 987 sculpture. 
  • MCCSC STEM to Them Mobile Science Lab hands-on engineering and making activities.
  • UITS Student Outreach VR painting.
  • Art Remains community cross stitch project.

Community Engagement

  • Remarks from Mayor Kerry Thomson, Provost Rahul Shrivastav, and Mill CEO John Fernandez. 
  • Hoosier the Bison meeting fans and taking selfies. 
  • City of Bloomington public outreach and city project feedback. 
  • CCC grant community engagement. 
  • Meet the Kiln tenants Paragraph Venture Studio and Bailey Weiler Design + Build.

 

Join the party!